Personality
by angelanharvey3
Summary: Bella starts to display odd behavior her first weekend back in Forks since the trip to Italy. What will happen when the Cullens learn about her fractured mind? There's not just one Bella for Edward to worry about now...there's three. AU/OOC/DARK/SPANKS
1. Bedtime Blues

EPOV

"Bella, you should sleep, sweetheart…we have school tomorrow." I pulled the covers back from the bed and sat down, silently inviting her to join me.

We were in Bella's bedroom and it was just past 11pm, which meant that Charlie had been down the hall soundly snoring for well over an hour now. Bella had showered and dressed in a matching purple pajama short and shirt set that stated she was 'Little Miss Naughty'. Fucking Adorable.

Bella stood up from the desk chair and shut the computer monitor off. She had been emailing her mother for the past 30 minutes. She smiled at me then ran over to the bed and jumped in, landing right in front of me. She giggled and grinned up at me.

"You are too cute." I smiled warmly back at her and kissed that little button nose. She reached up and gave me a quick kiss on my cheek.

"Lay down, Edward," she said softly and then yawned.

She had been really tired these past couple of days. My family and I had been back in Forks for three days now, and each of those days were filled with Bella. Everyone had missed her terribly. There was so much to catch up on. Apparently, for Bella, this included sleep. She hadn't slept very well, if at all, in the past 7 months. She let her health slip. She was thinner. This had me very concerned. She was thin to begin with, but now I would be surprised if she reached over 100 pounds if she stepped on a scale. I have to talk to Carlisle about giving her a check-up. Maybe I could get her some vitamins…

"Please?" Bella interrupted my reverie.

"I'm sorry, love. What do you need?"

She eyed me skeptically. I rarely ever get lost in my own thoughts enough to not pay attention to what's being said around me. _Well, this is unnerving._ My worries about Bella in general have dominated my mind since we arrived back in Forks on Friday. I sighed. I just need to relax when I'm with Bella, and I can worry about her while she sleeps.

"Lay down." She repeated the same request she had before.

_Easy enough._

I laid down under the covers, dressed in the flannel pajama pants and soft cotton shirt I had recently purchased. I took Bella shopping with me on Saturday for this sole purpose. Pajamas. I bought a lot of them, and Bella helped me pick which ones she liked best. After all, it was for her benefit. It was a new concept for me, I never really had a need for them. Not even when I first began spending the nights with my Bella. She never complained about my jeans. But as Alice pointed out, Bella might enjoy snuggling up next to soft fabrics instead of rough denim.

I had never thought of that. The fact that it might be uncomfortable for her. I felt like an idiot when Alice brought it up, and I had looked at Bella sheepishly. She had insisted that it didn't bother her, but I was going to rectify the situation regardless. Bella's comfort may not be a big deal to her, but it is very important to me. I have to take very special care of her now. Especially now, since she doesn't seem to care too much about herself…her comforts…her safety…her health.

Bella straddled my hips and then laid down on my chest, her head fitting snugly under my chin. This was a new position for us, and it is still somewhat awkward for me. Just the act of her straddling me gets me aroused and that is really not appropriate right now. It's just that, in our new sleeping position, her delicious heat is just _right there _and it's enough to drive me mad with lust for her warm, fragile body. I have to block out those thoughts immediately, and reign in my control. Bella doesn't need me rejecting her need to sleep on top of me because I can't control my urges. It is not fair to her and it's my own damn fault she sleeps like this now, anyway.

She told me Friday night, very matter-of-factly, that in this new position, I simply cannot leave. That, if I make a move, she'll wake up.

_Apparently, she's a light sleeper now._

So it would seem that my Bella has abandonment issues. Not to mention, quite a few insecurities now. Again, all of this is my fault.

_I am such an asshole._

So I resolved that I need to do my best to remedy the situation and give her everything she wants and needs. Reassure her all the time. Be around her constantly. Let her sleep in ridiculously, awkward positions. I would do anything for her. I just need her to feel better. To trust me again. I know it will take a while and it won't be easy, but the tediousness of it all is driving me up the fucking wall. I need to learn to have patience with her, though. It's just that the evidence of her constant distrust in me breaks my heart.

_It's your own damn fault and you did it to yourself. Because you're an asshole._

Last night illustrated for me just how difficult this 'trust-journey' might be. She was sleeping soundly on top of me, making those cute little noises and sighs in her sleep I had missed so much. I had just moved my body a little to the left, intent on getting the book off the nightstand to do a little reading while Bella cuddled close to me, but the second I moved to get it, she woke up. She darted straight up into a sitting position on top of my hips and started breathing hard. Amazingly, tears were already starting to roll down her pale cheeks, and she was looking around the room for about 3 seconds before her eyes shifted down and landed on me. I was stunned at her reaction to my little movement and reached up to wipe away her tears with my thumbs and shush her. I held my arms up to her, inviting her back onto my chest. She immediately complied and I enveloped her in my arms, rocking her a little bit from side to side, whispering loving words in her ear. She started to calm down almost immediately, and was back asleep within minutes. I spent the rest of the night holding her and gently rocking her, trying to think of a way to make her happy again. To make her fucking _content_ with me again.

"So, what's the story Carlisle is going to tell the school in the morning?" she asked as her face nuzzled my neck.

"Well, it will be just me and Alice starting back at school tomorrow with you. The other's are supposed to be in college this year, remember?"

"Yeah. Just you, me and Alice. We're going to stick together, huh?"

I chuckled quietly and kissed her hair. This was her way of asking if Alice really was staying or if she was going to choose to stay home with Jasper eventually. Bella had missed Alice a lot. "Yes, we are definitely sticking together."

"So, the story?"

"Well, the story is that Esme missed small town living and Carlisle saw that the he could offer Forks hospital the help it needs more than he could be an advantage at the well-off hospital in California, so they decided it was best if we just moved back…so, here we are. Alice and I will be re-enrolled in the morning, and…guess what?"

Bella yawned again and looked up at me, placing her chin on my chest. "What?"

"Alice saw that you and I will have all our classes together. My schedule will mirror yours. And she is in three of the classes with us."

That earned me a smile. I was momentarily dazzled by her perfection. "Really?"

I kissed her forehead and started running my fingers through her long, silky locks. They were almost down to her waist now and I loved it. I smiled. "Yes, really. Now go to sleep baby. Back to school in the morning," I reminded her. She hummed in agreement and laid her head back down under my chin. I continued my soft caresses through her hair down her back.

After a few minutes, her breathing slowed and I knew she was close to drifting off. I started thinking about when I should talk to Carlisle about Bella's health check-up. After some debating, I decided to just do it tomorrow after he got home from the hospital, while Bella eats her dinner. Hopefully, he can do it immediately and then I can have her on some kind of vitamins by the next morning. Bella interrupted my thoughts, deciding that she wanted to have a conversation at…I looked at the alarm clock, 12:03 in the morning.

_Great. __Well, this isn't good...she needs to sleep. Be firm with her,_ I told myself.

"Edward?" she mumbled sleepily.

"Yes, love?" I whispered back to her.

"What is Alice gonna make me wear tomorrow?" she asked softly.

I sighed. "I don't know, angel, you'll find out in the morning," I assured her. "But now, you need to sleep. Shhhh." I started rocking her a bit, along with my gentle caress on her back, hoping that would aid in helping her fall asleep. It worked last night, after all.

"Yeah, but is she gonna come over here in the morning, or are you going to take me to your house?" she insisted.

I knew what she was doing. I knew that she was fighting sleep, by trying to have this pointless conversation. I knew it was all just to put sleep off for as long as possible, for fear of me leaving, but this was just getting ridiculous. She needed more sleep than she'd been getting, and after this weekend of 'bedtime avoiding drama', I knew it was going to be up to me to make sure that this didn't have a chance to go on any further. The simple fact of the matter was, that it was just time for bed, and that was...just...fucking final. Yeah.

_Dear Lord, I sound like her father. This could go wrong in sooo many ways._

I sighed deeply. I was going to have to be firm, and that scared me a little. I never had a problem with it before, but that was before she turned into an overly-sensitive, insecure mess. I had to be careful with her. And besides, I didn't want her upset, or have her thinking that I didn't want to talk to her. Because I do want to talk to her. All the fucking time, actually.

_Damn it all to hell._

But I had to put my fears aside and just fucking_ do_ it already, because her health depended on it. So, I tried to sound stern and whisper back to her at the same time. I'm not sure how much I succeeded. "She'll be here at 6:30 to hug you 'good morning' and show you the outfit she picked just for you." I cleared my throat. "Now, go to sleep Bella. It's past midnight." I kissed her hair again.

_Ok, well hopefully that's the end of _that_. Now she'll go to sleep and her sleep-talking will entertain me until the morning. _

That thought made me smile. Bella was pretty funny when she slept. I can remember a few times having whole conversations with her in that state about the silly things in her dreams. One time in particualr, she was upset because I didn't catch her a fluffy white rabbit and bring it home to her from one of my hunting trips. She was going to name it SkuttleButt and apparently, was heartbroken that I had returned without it. She was fascinating.

"Ok, well then -"

"Bella," I interrupted her. She lifted her head at my tone and looked at me with wide eyes. I gave her a stern look and made my voice hard. "Sleep." But my gentle caress down her back betrayed my hard façade. My fingers reached her waist when she decided to speak again.

"I just -" I heard the whiny tone in her voice and without allowing myself to think about it, I lightly slapped her ass. Her only reaction was to bite her pink, bottom lip.

_Ok, tread carefully, asshole..._

I stared at her for a few seconds, trying to silently communicate with her. Tell her I was serious about this. I needed for her to quit being ridiculous and just go to sleep. When I finally spoke, it was just a whisper, "Naughty girl…" I admonished her, shaking my head a little, never breaking eye contact.

After a moment, I put the hand that had been running along her spine, to her cheek and lightly stroked my thumb under her left eye, across her cheekbone. Then, in the same hard tone of voice, I said, "Bella, you need to stop. Right now. Alright? I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to hold you all night long and then you'll wake up to my kisses all over your beautiful face in the morning. You have to stop all of this nonsense, baby. Avoiding sleep? It is NOT healthy. I won't tolerate it anymore. Do you understand me?" I asked, trying to keep my voice hard. After all, I'm supposed to be firm on this matter, right? Even if i do feel like a complete ass right now.

_Please Bella, just go to sleep. _

She nodded and without another word, broke our eye contact to lay her head back on my chest. She was asleep within five minutes. I smiled to myself, relieved, and proud that I was obviously doing this 'firm' thing right.

"No Alice, no pink…" Bella mumbled in her sleep.

I kissed her hair then, and promised, "No pink," in a soft whisper. I stared up at the ceiling and settled in for the night with my sleeping beauty.


	2. Something Is Wrong

A/N:

Oh yeah ~ I do not own any of the original Twilight characters, I just like to play with 'em...so I brought a few friends of my own to play in this story, as well.

* * *

BPOV

I woke up to a low humming sound. Soon I could feel gentle, frosty touches all over my forehead. Then I felt my body being moved sideways, rolling off of Edward's chest, to lay on my bed and I moaned sleepily.

_Too early._

I could hear a whisper of a chuckle then those little frosty pecks started again. First, on my cheek, then across my nose to my other cheek, eventually landing on my chin. I sighed and tried to shake my head a little to let Edward know that I wasn't ready to wake up yet. I couldn't have been asleep for my than a few hours. That's when I heard it.

"Belllaaaaaa…." Alice's voice softly sang from somewhere in the room.

Edward didn't hesitate to join in. "Bellllaaaaa….." they both said softly in a sing-song voice.

I could feel cold fingers running through my hair and then an Eskimo kiss on my nose.

_Aww, I love those._

I slowly cracked my eyes open for a peek and was met with the most beautiful smile. Edward was inches from my face, fully intent to continue kissing me awake, if needed, and I gave him a small smile to let him know I was starting to wake up.

I stretched and yawned sleepily, and started to rub my eyes. When I opened them again, I could see Alice at the foot of my bed, staring down at me. She had a bright smile on her face and an outfit hanging off her arm. I looked back at Edward and rolled over onto my side and curled up, snuggling into my blankets.

_Too early._

Edward started rubbing my back. "It's 6:30, Bella. Alice is here with that outfit she picked out for you today. Charlie left for work already," he informed me.

"Kay…" I mumbled.

He continued rubbing my back for a few minutes then started getting out of bed, pulling me with him. Once I was standing, he asked what I wanted for breakfast.

"Fruit," I said and then yawned again, producing some sleep-tears with it.

I sniffled a bit, causing Alice to look at me curiously. I just waved to her and rubbed my eyes again. I looked up to see Edward staring at me with worry in his eyes.

"You're going to bed an hour early tonight, Bella," he told me.

I knew not to argue about this and just nodded. Nothing sounded better than 'going to bed' to me right now, anyway.

Edward went downstairs to start chopping some fresh fruit for me the same time I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth and wash my face. I came back into my room to find Alice ready to play dress-up. I eyed her warily.

"What?"

"No pink, please," was all I said.

She giggled and agreed. "Jeans and a nice, form-fitting black top. That ok with you?"

I nodded, "Awesome."

"I thought so," she smirked.

I got dressed while she rambled on about how today was gonna be so great and she was so excited that we had three classes together. I just nodded and smiled. It really was great, but right now I was just too tired to show proper enthusiasm.

"...and I finished pairing off the tops and bottoms that you and Edward got over the weekend into complete outfits, so I can bring them all over tonight for you. You picked out some really pretty things, you know? It's makes me proud," she finished, smiling.

"Proud?" I asked curiously. "Jesus, Al, I can dress nicely when I want to. But, you know, jeans and a tee will always be my first love," I said wistfully.

Her face fell and I laughed at her. "Hey, I'm wearing jeans and a tee today, aren't I?" I said, gesturing towards the clothes I had put on. "Does it look pretty? Does it make you _proud_?" I asked.

"It does," she replied, looking me up at down and nodding.

I was putting my black belt on when Edward appeared next to me and kissed my cheek. "Breakfast is served, love. And, yes, you look 'pretty'."

I smiled up at him then grabbed a fistful of his shirt and brought his face down towards mine for a kiss. He reached around me and slid both his hands into my back jean pockets. I felt him squeeze my butt with his strong, cold hands as he pulled me flush against his body. I moaned and gently nibbled on his bottom lip. I could feel his lips curve up into a smile as I reached up to run my fingers through his wild hair. He pulled away, starting to kiss along my jaw and I started to catch my breath.

_Ugh...I want to lick him._

"Good morning, beautiful," his velvety voice whispered in my ear.

_It is now._

His hands were still gripping my ass lightly, and when he started the rubbing, I had to try really hard to supress the moan trying to escape my lips.

"Mornin," I breathed out, thoroughly dazzled.

He chuckled into my hair and withdrew his hands. I looked up into his honey-gold gaze and smiled.

"Go eat your fruit," he said before giving my nose a quick peck and turning me towards the door.

I went downstairs and sat down in my chair at the kitchen table. I started to think about how much had changed in just these past few days. Part of me was expecting to wake up, as if this was all just a dream. Italy and the Volturi were definitely a nightmare. Red eyed demons still haunt my thoughts throughout the day. I have a feeling that they won't be going away anytime soon though.

_Lucky me._

Saturday, to my complete suprise, Edward took me shopping. For pajamas, no less! I could tell it was a wierd concept for him, and I tried to tell him that it wasn't needed, but he insisted after having a conversation with Alice, that it was, indeed, needed, stating 'your comfort is a priority'.

_Right, okay. Whatever eases your guilt on abandoning me._

While we were pajama shopping for Edward, he asked if I wanted anything, hinting towards the fact that a lot of my clothes were loose-fitting on me now. He must have noticed how my jeans were sagging a bit. I relented and we ended up shopping for me too. When we arrived back at the mansion, Alice had a field day with all my new clothes. She wanted to 'coordinate' them all, promising to have them back to me in a day or two. I let her have at it, she was just to happy about it for me to tell her no.

I called Jake a few times. He has yet to return those calls. I have a feeling the situation with my best friend is going to be complicated. I hate that he's making me feel like I have betrayed him in some way. As though I have to choose between him and my Edward. I won't choose. He's my best friend, and I have never wanted anything more from him. I've made that fact clear a few times. It doesn't seem to stop him from pushing for more though, and I don't know else to do. I mean, there's only so many ways that you can say, "hey, I love you - but I'm not_ in_ love with you."

I sighed. "Ugh, it's hopeless..." I muttered to myself.

I was eating my fruit, lost in my frustrating thoughts, when Alice came downstairs alone and sat next to me.

_Alone...hmm_

I picked up a strawberry and nibbled on it. "Where's Edward?" I asked, trying for a nonchalant vibe about my missing boyfriend.

I'm sure I didn't succeed by the look she gave me.

Pity.

I immediately looked away, focusing instead on my very interesting banana slices.

_Quit feeling sorry for me!_

"He's in your bathroom. He didn't go home this morning to change for school, so I brought his clothes over too."

I nodded, that made sense. A few minutes later, Edward came downstairs in all his sexy glory wearing dark blue jeans and a loose fitting black shirt. I sat there staring at him for a minute until I realized I had been caught ogling his perfection, when he started laughing. I blushed and tore my eyes away from his body.

He stepped over to me and murmured, "I love that blush," as he ran his cool fingers across my cheek, then he bent down to kiss where his fingers had just touched.

"You guys match!" Alice announced and then laughed as I looked down at my outfit and blushed. Again.

I laughed lightly, "Yeah. I guess we do," then began gulping down my orange juice.

I noticed that my head was starting to hurt. With that realization, I started to worry. It wasn't the pain of a normal headache, more like a little pressure and slight dizziness. This only happened when I was getting ready to have what I like to call: 'a Marie-Episode', and that wasn't good. At all. I'm not ready to talk about my split-personality bullshit with any of the Cullens. Especially Edward. He'll just blame himself, due to the timing of Marie's, ummm...arrival. She started showing up around Thanksgiving, while I was apparently 'comatose', or whatever they called it.

I had this problem before, when I was five years old. Back then, I didn't view it as a problem, though. I just figured I had an imaginary friend. Isabella, ironically, is what she called herself. She was a lot of fun. Things were really bad for me at that point in my young life, and she showed up to help me deal with my harsh reality. She was my best friend in the whole world. I could talk to her about everything and she would play with me a lot. But eventually, Mom insisted that I got help for my apparent 'problem', so I started seeing a pshyciatrist when I was ten. I was hospitalized for three months during my treatment, and then the small voice in my head started to fade. Her interactions with me and my episodes of losing the time became less and less, until finally, they just stopped altogether.

Marie, as she likes to call herself, hasn't shown up in a while, though. It's been probably a month or so, since I heard her voice, or lost the time. I had started to wonder where she had gone...

It would be just my fucking luck for her to show up NOW...at a time like this...when I finally have Edward and the Cullens back in my life. This could ruin everything. They would never understand.

With that thought in mind, I stood up from the table then and started up the stairs.

"Whatchya doin?" Alice asked.

"I'll be right down. You guys can start the car and get it warmed up if you want," I said without looking back.

I went to the bathroom and started rifling through the medicine cabinet, intent on finding some Excedrin. After a minute, my shaky hands found the blessed green bottle and I smiled.

"Finally," I muttered to myself and started to twist the lid.

"Bella, what are you doing?" Edward asked from the door frame of the bathroom.

I hadn't heard him come up and I gasped then turned around to see him staring at me intently.

I lifted up the bottle for his viewing pleasure. "I have a headache," I informed him.

At this, a look of worry came over his gorgeous features and I smiled a little to try and reassure him that I was alright. Then I took two pills in my hand and popped them in my mouth. Getting some water from the sink, I swallowed them down.

"There, see? All better." Then I smiled brightly and gave him a quick peck on the lips.

His eyes roamed over my face and he gave a slight nod, seeming to be placated for the time being. "Are you ready to go to school? Alice is down in the car waiting."

_School, Marie...Marie at school. Hmm, this could get really complicated. _

I sighed.

"Bella?" I heard Edwards say, but I didn't respond.

Well, fuck, if she wants to pop in and say 'hi', there's not a damn thing I can do about it.

_Damn it. Shit. Goddamnit!_

I could feel my teeth digging into the flesh of my lower lip. I winced as I began to taste a little blood.

"...should tell me what you're thinking," he requested, probably for the fifth time since we'd been standing here.

I blinked up at him.

_But maybe it really is just a headache and I'm worrying over nothing_.

Yes, I am overreacting about this, while I stand in my dingy bathroom and stare off into space, while my boyfriend tries helplessly to get my attention.

_So much for trying to convince him you're not crazy. Way to go, Bella. Way. To. Go._

Completely conflicted, I just nodded and walked past him to my bedroom. I grabbed my book bag and slung it over my shoulder. Edward didn't say anything as we walked downstairs and out the door, but he had a firm grip on my hand the whole time. After I locked the front door, we got in the Volvo and headed off to school.

Edward walked me to first period, then left to go meet Alice and Carlisle in the office to take care of his re-enrollment. I sat down in my usual seat all the way in the back and settled in to listen to the teacher drone on about history. His voice was getting really fucking annoying and my headache still hadn't gone away, so I put my head down and looked to my left out of the window in the classroom. It was gloomy and gray outside, to match my mood. I don't know why I expected anything different.

I knew when Edward walked into the classroom. Not only did I feel his presence, but there were a lot of gasps from the other students and then their whispering started. I lifted my head from it's spot on the desk, met his eyes, and smiled. He smiled back and then walked over to the teacher to give him his tardy pass. Then he strolled down the aisle and sat down right next to me, reaching out to hold my hand. I scooted my desk and little closer to his, and laid my head back down on my arm. Edward's brow furrowed as he looked at me with concern. I knew he was worrying, but this was just a headache. A normal, common headache. It will go away.

_It better fucking go away._

But what if my 'episodes' aren't over, though? A one month time-span is hardly enough time to think that Marie just 'went away', for lack of a better term. It never was with Isabella. I'd go two or three months at a time without hearing a peep from her.

_Ugh, I am so screwed._

What will the Cullens think when they find out that they came back to a crazy girl? Will Edward blame himself? Oh God, will he want to leave again 'for my own good'? What about the rest of the Cullens? What's going to happen when they find out that I'm not the same Bella they left behind almost a year ago? I can't bear the thought of it. It's too much, and the 'what-if's' are driving me insane. I feel Edward squeeze my hand a little and notice that I am breathing hard.

_Shit._

I start to push these thoughts and worries away. They are useless and besides, it's _only _a headache.

_Just relax and try to act normal for five fucking minutes!_

I started taking deep cleansing breaths and smiled at him. He smiled back a little but it didn't reach his eyes.

_Yeah, this isn't gonna work._

He's obviously going to worry about me until this headache goes away. And that's _all _it is. A harmless little headache.

_Right._

EPOV

Bella had been quiet all morning. I would have little conversations with her here and there, but it was clear that she was still tired. She said her head was hurting her, so that would mean that the Excedrin from this morning obviously didn't work. That irritated me. If it really is 'the headache medicine', as advertised, then it should do it's fucking job already and get rid of my Bella's headache for her.

_Fucking incompetant western medicine._

I asked her if she wanted to go home in third period, but she declined, stating that her father would be angry if she left early. After all, it was just a 'little headache'. She seemed to say that a lot, like she was trying to downplay what was wrong with her. I couldn't help but worry, though.

We were standing in the lunch line now, getting Bella some food. I had my arm around her waist, keeping her tucked into my side and she kept her head lowered with her hands stuck in her pockets. She mumbled to me that she wanted a sandwich and some carrot sticks. I grabbed them and some lemonade for her to drink, then quickly paid for it all. We went to meet Alice at our table, and I sat down in between them.

Bella started crunching on her carrot sticks, and tapping her fingers on the table when Alice brought up the conversation I had been dreading all morning.

"So, Bella." Alice started, getting her attention.

"So, Alice." Bella mimicked, a small smile playing on her lips.

Alice smiled back and got on with it. "Charlie is having dinner at Sue's house, so you're going to come to our house tonight. Esme is fixing you some chicken and potatos. Does that sound good?"

Bella shrugged and nodded, "Yum."

Her father not coming home at night was apparently a normalcy now. He was in a relationship with Sue Clearwater and only came home regularly at night to go to sleep. Sometimes not even then. Bella seems fine with this arrangement though, stating that it's like living on her own, giving her some independence.

_Yes, independence and lots of alone time for us._

Alice continued as Bella bit into her sandwich. "Ok, so we should be by your place to pick you up at 7:00 for dinner at Casa de Cullen, and then we'll hang out afterwards for a bit, ok?"

'Hanging out', meaning her health check-up.

Bella stopped mid chew and stared at a smiling Alice. She had a little bit of sauce from her sandwich on the corner of her mouth. After a few seconds, her gaze drifted to me and I saw it there in her eyes. Fear.

_Why are you afraid?_

She started chewing again slowly, never breaking our eye contact and after she swallowed, she picked up a napkin, wiped the sauce off her mouth, then asked, "Where will you be before 7:00?"

I was quick to answer her. "Bella, we're going hunting today, after school lets out."

I could see the fear, now mixed with worry in her eyes.

"We're staying close by though, so it'll only be for a few hours."

And now she was pouting.

_Damn it._

"In fact, I'll probably be climbing in your window around six, instead of seven," I said, trying to placate her.

I reached out and grabbed her hand, rubbing slow circles into her palm. We stared at each other and I tried to look reassuring in my gaze. After a second or two, I saw something shift in her eyes, but then she looked away, nodding a bit and then went back to eating her lunch.

I looked at Alice and she seemed to be thinking the same thing as me. We were worried about Bella.

After that Bella's eyes kept drifting over the cafeteria crowd, darting all around. She checked the clock on the wall a few times.

_Is she anxious to leave?_

"Are you done eating?" I looked at her tray, she had only eaten half of her food. She couldn't finish a little sandwich and a few carrot sticks?

_Unacceptable._

I sighed, knowing this would also be a problem. Food and sleep. She needed more of both.

It took her a second to look at me again, but when she did I saw something like recognition light up in her eyes. I furrowed my brow, wondering what that look was about, but she just nodded then stood from the table, walking quickly over to the trash cans. She dumped her tray, with half of her fucking food on it, and we started walking to our next class, Chemistry, while Alice skipped off to her Trig class.

_Deal with the food subject later, NOT at school in front of other people. Don't embarrass her._

She sat down at the lab table in the far back corner of the room and I sat down next to her. She turned to look at me and I smiled.

She didn't smile back.

Instead, she just stared at me...for what seemed like forever, her eyes full of wonder and...anger? I was unsure of what to do, when the other students started coming in from lunch. The noises they were making seemed to remind Bella that we weren't alone and she finally looked away, starting to get her book and notes out for this class.

Great, now I was worrying again. Was she upset that I had to leave for a couple hours this afternoon? Why has she been so quiet? And what was with the weird staring contest and minute ago…

I was brought out of my reverie when none other than Mike Newton came over to our lab table. I internally groaned. I was not in the mood to deal with him, or his juvenile mind. I could tell in his thoughts, though, that he was wary and resentful towards me. He was remembering what Bella had been like at the beginning of the school year after her birthday. Depressed, and very withdrawn. I winced at his mental images.

"So, Bella…" Mike said.

Bella kept her head down, paying meticulous attention to her doodlings in her notebook. I thought she was going to ignore him, but after a minute, Bella looked up from her artwork and stared at Mike, raising her eyebrows. "Yes?"

I was surprised by her tone of voice. It was louder than this morning's shy murmurings, and it came out sharper than expected. I looked at her again and examined her side profile.

_Hmmm, maybe her headache finally went away._

I smiled at the thought, relieved that she might be brightening from this morning's pouty mood.

"Umm…yeah, umm, so…"

"Spit it out, Newton." Bella demanded.

I kept staring at her, now amused, but somewhat puzzled.

_Is she angry at the boy?_

I searched Mike's mind and found out his intention was to come over here to discuss a project they were assigned to do together a few weeks ago. It was due in on Wednesday, in two days. He was very nervous by my presence though. After a second, I knew why; it seems he tried to flirt with her while I was away. And he was very persistent, as usual. I bristled at the images of him talking to my Bella, persuading her to go with him to see a movie.

Mike looked shocked at her tone of voice for a second, then tried to talk to her again. "Bell-Bella, I was just c-coming over to t-talk about the umm…project? Y-yeah…."

"What about the project?" she looked at him curiously. "What's wrong with you? Why all the stuttering?"

Bella stood up now so she could be eye level with Mike. Instead she just came up to about his shoulder, and had to tilt her head up for eye contact. It was adorable how she tried though.

"I-I…I'm not stuttering, Bella." he said shaking his head a bit and laughing nervously.

"Yes you are," she insisted. "Is something wrong? What, do I make you nervous now? Why are you stuttering like a goddamn idiot? Why? And what about the project? My part is done, are you done?" she kept shooting off questions, one right after the other, not giving him any time to speak.

I was trying really hard to keep a straight face. My kitten is cute when she's mad.

_Feisty._

Mike stared at her for a minute then finally replied, "Actually no, I'm not done. I was going to ask you-"

Bella interrupted him. "You've got to be fucking kidding me," she said, exasperated. "I'm not carrying your ass on this project, Newton! Get your shit in gear, and get it done," she demanded. "I'm not failing this class because of you." She stepped closer to him and glared. "Is that clear?"

_Holy hell._

"B-Bella, I'm sorry. I-it's just that-"

She interrupted him again, shaking her head a little, "No excuses! This project isn't even that hard. You should have had it done after a couple of days, like I did. But this jack off," she pointed to the teacher, "gave us two weeks to do it," she stated, holding up two fingers for emphasis.

"Bella, I've been busy, a-and-"

Her voice started to get louder, her face blushing furiously. "So have I! You think you're the only person with shit to do? Huh? I just arrived back in the fucking country a few days ago! You think I haven't been busy? That I have nothing better to do than pick up after your sorry ass?" She was all huffy and I saw her clenching her fists.

_Shit..._

"What is your problem?" she screamed at him and shoved his chest. "Are you fucking stupid or something?" She was breathing hard and after a few seconds, spoke again in a low voice. "Get it done. NOW."

I stood up, intent on taking her hand to tell her to calm down, but when I did, Newton jumped a little and took a step back, starting to breathe a little hard, himself. Tears started glistening in his eyes. I was starting to feel sorry for the kid.

I grabbed Bella's hand. "Bella…" but she ripped her hand away and looked at me sharply.

"I'll deal with you later," she stated in a low voice, then focused her attention back on Mike.

I sat back down, confused.

_What did I do?_

When her eyes focused back on Mike, she gasped. He looked up at the noise, into Bella's eyes.

"Are you crying?" she asked incredulously.

"NO," he stated in what I'm sure he thought was a manly voice.

Actually, it squeaked a bit.

Bella whispered to herself while staring up at him in wonder. "Jesus Christ, you're fucking pathetic."

As amusing as I found Bella railing on Newton was, I really didn't want her getting into any trouble. "Fuck, Bella, that's enough. Sit down, now - the class is ready to start." I told her after I noticed everyone was staring at their display. Including the teacher.

Bella ignored me, instead she kept talking to Mike. "What's wrong princess, does your pussy hurt? Is that why you're crying?" she asked in mock concern.

Everyone in the room gasped, including myself. After a second, the class erupted into giggling and laughter. Then there was snickering, and whispers.

I just stared at her a little stunned. And turned on. When had my Bella gotten such a dirty mouth?

_But damn, it's fucking erotic coming from of that pretty little mouth._

The teacher finally decided to speak up. "Ms. Swan, Mr. Newton, please take your seats."

Mike started muttering at Bella to "shut up" while walking over to his assigned seat, next to Jessica Stanley.

But apparently, my Bella wasn't finished. "That's right, go over there and take your seat like a good boy. While you're over there, why don't you start looking for your fucking nut sack, cry baby. Let me know when you find it, ok? Then you can come back over here and try that conversation again, without your stuttering nonsense. And finish the goddamn project, Mike! If I fail it because of your dumbass, I'm taking you outside and ramming your face into that brick wall," she threatened.

_Aaaand, there you have it ladies and gentlemen. She took it too far._

So much for keeping her out of trouble...

"Bella!" I yelled at her the same time the teacher called her name. "Ms. Swan!"

She whipped her head angrily toward the teacher and growled, "What?"

Fucking _growled_.

_Oh. My. God._

Ok, this is not the time to focus on how sexy she looks in all her angry, growling glory.

_Ugh, she is perfection._

"Office, now," he told her grimly.

Just then, the classroom door flew open and Alice stood in the doorway staring directly at Bella, but her thoughts were screaming frantically at me.

_Something is wrong with Bella!_

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A/N:

Review for me, sweets :)


	3. Take Me Home

A/N:

If you haven't already guessed, I'm reposting my story on this site. I did some research and read what Wide Awake's author, AngstGoddess003, posted about this James prick, and apparently he is a fake. A loser, a part of the Literate Union, posing as an admin for this site. So that email he sent me, talking about disciplinary action and telling me to take my story down? Yeah. That shit is fake too. So, here you go, my beautiful sassy readers ~ ALL 50 chaps comin right up! :)

* * *

BPOV

Edward explained that he needed to go on a hunting trip while I was eating my sandwich. I tried concentrating on his words. His comforting gaze. The taste of this delicious sandwich. Everything was going out of focus though. I was getting upset, I knew that much. I needed to calm down.

_He's just going to be gone for a couple of hours, it's not a big deal._

I need to look at this logically, and stop letting my emotions cloud my judgement. Ok...he HAS to feed. It's a necessity. If I were to try to convince him not to go, it would be the same as him telling me that I can't eat my sandwich. This delicious sandwich with the tangy sauce, and fresh, cold meat. I can't just deprive him of a meal, no matter how much I may want to. He would never do that to me.

I want to tell him to stay. I want to cry and beg him not to leave me, even if it is only for a few short hours...it will feel like an eternity to me.

_Ugh, I am so selfish._

I shook my head a little, everything was going blurry. I kept searching his gaze, helplessly trying to just focus and calm the fuck down. It wasn't working though. That's when I heard it.

**He's leaving us? _Why_? He just got back!**

Her voice was frantic. I started taking deep breaths, desperately trying to put off this inevitable 'episode'. I don't want him knowing about Marie.

**You don't want to introduce us? Aww, that's really too bad, doll. You couldn't keep him all to yourself even if you tried. He's mine, too.**

_But...what will he think?_

**It doesn't matter what he thinks! If he loves us, he'll accept it. Oooh, it will be fun to play with him...this will be like a test of his true love. So bloody romantic.**

_Marie, no._

**Can he deal? Or is he gonna be a pansy and cry about it?**

_This isn't a game._

**Ten bucks says he cries about it.**

_He won't understand! None of them will._

**Jesus Christ, stop your fucking whining - I will _handle_ it!**

I cringed at the harsh tone in my head. After a few seconds, I heard her again, her tone back to normal.

**I always take care of us, Bell. I'll make sure he never leaves us again...**

_What are you going to do?_

**Shhh, don't worry. I promise to be sweet.**

I heard her dark chuckle, as everything went black.

When everything came back into focus, I was outside. I could feel the cool breeze on my skin. It felt good. I noticed that everything was silent. I opened my eyes, and saw Edward and Alice standing by me, looking at me with such intensity, that I actually stepped back a little bit.

I just stared back at them, unsure of what to say. I knew what had just happened. Marie. That one word was explanation enough. And from the looks that they were giving me, they knew something was wrong with me. That I was crazy.

**Ugh, will you shut up with that bullshit already? You are NOT crazy.**

Oh, this is not good. I started hyperventilating.

"Bella? Shit, calm down, sweetheart. Just breathe, ok?" Edward walked over to me and enveloped me in his arms.

I just clung to him, and he picked me up like I was a child. I wrapped my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist. He put one arm under me to support my weight and with his other hand, started rubbing circles in my back.

What had happened? What did they see? What did Marie do?

I heard her giggles in my head, but no explanation.

_Damn it!_

**I'll show you later** she whispered to me.

_Later_ I agreed.

I started nervously running my fingers through Edwards hair at the nape of his neck and gulping down some much needed air. I had to clear my head. Please don't leave me, please don't leave me, please don't leave me... I kept repeating this mantra in my mind. I couldn't live through it if he left again because of this.

I must have started talking out loud, because the next thing I knew, he was whispering in my ear, "I'm not going to leave you," he stated firmly. "You are everything to me, my beautiful girl." He sighed deeply. "Oh, my Bella…" he breathed. "What happened? Are you alright? Baby, please calm down. Please."

I started breathing deeper, and calmer, just basking in his words of reassurance, and soon I could feel my body begin to relax in his arms. After a while, he set me back down on my feet and cupped my face in his big, strong hands then looked me in the eye. He didn't speak, and neither did I. Out of nowhere, Alice piped up. I almost forgot she was standing there with us.

"Hey," she said softly.

I looked at her. And that's when I took a second to look around and take in my surroundings. We were in the school parking lot. And it was still full of cars.

_What time is it?_

I looked at my wrist for my watch. 1:53pm. Wow, so I skipped about two hours. My mind reeled at what could have happened in that amount of time. I looked back up into Alice's eyes. She looked so concerned, and very confused. I felt a pang of guilt for making them worry so much.

**Bell, tell Ali to fucking calm down. And look at how anxious Edward is getting! This isn't a goddamn tragedy, ya know. So you can quit being a motherfucking drama queen about it. The sooner you relax, the better. Just let them know that you and me are a packaged deal. We stick together, remember? Always. I protect you. You're _my_ Bell.**

I grimaced at Marie's ramblings, then reached out to my best friend. "Hey," I said back. I wrapped my arms around her for a hug, which she seemed to enjoy immensely. "I'm ok, Alice. Really," I said softly, then I pulled back and smiled at her.

"What happened in class…? Bella, something is going on. I-I'm worried about you. Please, Bella. You can talk to me." She pleaded then looked up at Edward, who was watching me intently. "You can tell _us_ anything."

I nodded and then looked at the two vampires in front of me. This was so awkward and uncomfortable. I wish they would stop looking at me like that. I bit my lip as we kept up our silent staring.

_Nope. I'm really not ready to talk about this shit._

**Pansy.**

_You shut up._

"Can you take me home?" I asked Edward.

He didn't say anything. He just took my hand and we started walking towards the Volvo. He opened my door and I got in, buckling my seat belt. Alice slipped in behind me and Edward got in the drivers seat, started the car and drove off. We didn't talk, everything was silent. Edward held my hand in his lap and rubbed circles into my palm with his thumb. I was sort of confused right now, though, because I don't know what actually happened. I don't know what, exactly, they are freaking out about.

Marie will tell me when we're alone though. She always does. She'll let me watch her memory, so I'm not completely clueless when the time comes to discuss this.

Sooner than expected, we were parked in front of my house. Charlie wasn't home, but I didn't expect him to be. He never is anymore and besides, he would still be working at 2:00 in the afternoon on a Monday. I sighed and looked at Edward, to find that he was already looking at me. I bit my lip. I knew they were waiting for me to talk about it. Or maybe they were waiting for another weird outburst. I don't know.

_Ugh, everything is ruined._

**Shut up. Nothing is ruined. In fact, doll, nothing really happened. I didn't even get a chance to talk to Edward about leaving. Hmmm-Mmm, Edward. I want to bite him.**

I turned my head sharply from Edward and blushed. Rubbing my hand across my face to hide the blush, I reached for my door handle and felt Alice's hand on my shoulder. I paused and looked back at her.

"I bet you want some alone time, huh?" she suggested softly.

**No, I want you to stay and play with us, Ali.**

I stayed quiet and bit my lip.

She nodded in understanding. "We're going to get a head start on that hunting trip, ok?"

**She doesn't want to play?**

_No, they are going out to eat._

**Fine then.**

I nodded and turned to Edward. He leaned in and gave me a soft, lingering kiss. "I love you, Bella. I'll see you in a few hours, okay?"

I nodded. "I love you, too. Bag a few mountain lions for me, ok?" I smiled up at him, trying to lighten the mood.

He chuckled and said, "Anything for you, baby."

With that, I got out of the car and walked up to the front door and unlocked it. As I walked into the house and turned to close the door behind me, I heard the Volvo speed off. Now, I wait. To see if he'll really come back. Back to a crazy girl.

**He'll be back. We're irresistable** she said playfuly. I smiled.

I had been upstairs, cleaning my room when Marie decided to show me what happened today. It was actually kind of funny. We spent a good 10 minutes laughing together about it. I can't believe Mike actually started to cry! Aw yeah, but I wouldn't have been that mean to him. Though, maybe now he'll finish that stupid chemistry project. Marie was very adamant about not letting him treat me like a doormat. I'm definitely not doing the entire thing when it's supposed to be a partner-project.

I was dusting my bookshelf at 3:30, trying to past the time when there was a knock on the front door. I skipped downstairs to answer it and saw our neighbor, Ms. Haley standing there with a sheepish look on her face. I could already guess what she needed.

"Hey, Deb, what's up?"

"Bella, honey I need a favor."

I already knew what favor that would be, and didn't mind at all. "Where is she?" I asked, referring to the two year old little girl I had been babysitting a lot recently.

I didn't mind at all. It gave me something to do, and she was a funny little kid. We always had fun together, and I found out that after my first time watching her, she kept asking her mom when she could come play with me again.

"Katy's in the car, sleeping. I got called in to work on an emergency and probably won't be home untill around eleven," she cringed as she said this. "I know it's a school night for you, and all..."she whispered, looking at me hesitantly.

"Don't worry about it, we'll be fine." I suddenly remembered what Alice had said at lunch. "Umm, actually I have dinner plans over at my boyfriend's house. You know, the Cullens? It's at seven, so if you don't mind me bringing her along for the ride, we're going to have chicken and potatos from what I hear," I informed her.

She smiled and patted my shoulder. "Oh, that's fine, I just hope she isn't too much trouble for you."

"We'll be fine, and I should probably be back here around nine. I'll just hang out in the living room with her tonight, until you get back."

"That'll work!" she smiled brightly. I nodded and started walking out to her car to get Katy, carseat and all. "And you have my numbers in case you need anything."

I lifted the sleeping little girl into my arms and nodded again, "Yep. We'll see you tonight."

She came over to kiss Katy's forehead that was currently laying on my shoulder. "Tonight," she whispered, then got in her car and drove off.

I walked back into the house and laid Katy down on the couch, then went back outside to get her bag and car seat, thinking I would definitely need it tonight, with the way Edward drives.

That thought caught me off guard. Edward doesn't know Katy...none of the Cullens do. He doesn't know about my recent babysitting adventures...

**He doesn't know a lot about you now.**

That thought made me sad. It was true. A lot had changed since they left me behind. Oh well, the only way to remedy that situation is to let the Cullens get to know me again. The _real_ me.

I grabbed my backpack and sat down at the coffee table with my back to the couch Katy was laying on, and pulled out some of my homework. After 10 minutes of trigonometry, Katy started to wake up. She opened her bleary eyes, saw me and smiled.

"Hey munchkin!"

"Bewwa!" she giggled, sitting up.

"You wanna play with me today?"

She smiled brightly and nodded then held her arms out for a hug. I embraced her and commented on how she was getting 'so big'. Yeah, it was a lie, she still only came up to just above my knee, but she totally ate that shit right up.

We were sitting in the living room, Katy in my lap, watching Spongebob when the front door abruptly slammed, scaring the shit out of me.

"Ahh!" I screamed, making Katy scream right along with me.

I heard Charlie's voice, "What the hell? Oh...hey Katy," he said softly and waved to her.

"Hi, Chawie," she squeaked, then turned her attention back on the TV where Spongebob and Patrick were doing....something, with that, ummm...Squidguy? Yeah, I have no idea what was happening, but Katy was really getting into it. Singing along, laughing, and all that.

"Hey, Dad."

_Long time, no see._

"Bella, we need to talk," he informed me.

Dread froze the pit of my stomach. He was home early. And I know that tone of voice. It's universal to all kids. It's the 'you're in deep shit now'voice. I clenched my eyes shut and opened them again, trying to steel myself against the wrath of my dad. He must have been contacted at work by the school.

_Shit._

"Isabella Marie!" he yelled when I didn't respond. Didn't even look at him.

_Oh shit._

"Alright!" I yelled back, picking Katy up off my lap and placing her on the floor. "I'm gonna go get you a juice cup, ok? Stay here and watch your show," I told her.

She nodded, her eyes glued to the screen.

I stood and turned to face my dad, who was glaring at me.

_Glaring at me? Damn, he never glares..._

"Yeah, dad? What's up?" I asked, trying not to sound as nervous as I was.

"Kitchen," was all he said, then he turned to walk to said kitchen, with me hot on his heels.

As soon as he turned around to face me, his hand flashed out and I instinctively flinched. When I focused on what was in his hand, I saw that it was a letter from the mail. I looked up at him, puzzled. He looked furious.

"A ticket, Isabella?" he demanded.

_Oh shit._

I exhaled a breath I didn't know I had been holding. "Look, Da-"

"Speeding with no seatbelt?" he practically screamed at me.

_Fuck._

**Don't let this motherfucker scream at you, Bell. Take care of it, or I will.**

I just looked up at him stunned. I don't remember getting a ticket at all. That could only mean that this was Marie's fault. Ugh, I was so angry with her right now. Tears glistened my eyes, and I could feel them start to fall down my cheeks.

"I…I'm sorry," was all I could manage to say to my dad.

_Damn it, this isn't my fault!_

"Sorry is not going to clear this problem up, and you know it! Isabella what was going through your head?"

"Charlie…please, keep your voice down, alright? Katy is in the next room, your going to scare her," I whispered harshly, taking a few steps back away from him.

He ignored me. "What if you had hurt someone else with your recklessness? You've got to stop being so stupid, Isabella!" he roared at me. "You are gonna learn to put safety first, damn it. I've taught you better than this!"

My vision started to blur as I heard Marie's voice again.

**If he makes you flinch one more time...** her voice threatened.

"And the school called me at work, by the way. Disrupting class, threatening a student, and cutting last period? What the hell is going on with you?" he yelled in my face.

I took a deep breath. This was getting out of hand. "Look, I'm sorry, ok? Now could you just please shut up? I have a headache," I whispered, tears drenching my cheeks.

He looked stunned, then anger quickly came over his features, "Did you just tell me to shut up? I am your father, you don't tell me what to do, you disrespectful little girl."

Fucking hell, this wasn't working. Everything was getting so blurry.

I wiped the tears from my eyes. "Dad!" I yelled back getting his attention. and clearing my head at the same time. "Look, I'll pay for the ticket and be more careful from now on, alright? I promise. And I said I was sorry, what else do you want from me?" I asked, my voice no longer a whisper.

"It's not about the ticket, it's about your carelessness! And what the hell happened at school?"

That was the last thing I heard him say, before everything went black.

MPOV

_Well, isn't this just motherfucking peachy._

I looked up into the angry face of my father figure and sighed. All this drama over a stupid little piece of paper...

And by the way, where the hell has he been, lately? Certainly not around here! My Bell got depressed and he just up and fucking disappeared like those Cullens did. He just couldn't hack it with an emotional teenage daughter, so I showed up to take care of her. My Bell needs me. I protect her. I'm damn good at my job too.

Hell, he probably just got a call at the station, notifying him of my traffic violation, then got embarrassed in front of all his little cop buddies. So, _now_ he wants to come home to play 'daddy'. To scream in my face.

_I don't fucking think so._

"Fuck you," I spat, glaring into his eyes.

_*SMACK*_

_Oh...my god, he fucking hit me!_

I put my hand to my cheek and could feel tears smarting my eyes. I started to clench my fist.

_Goddamn it, I hate crying._

"Don't you ever talk to me that way again, young lady! Do you hear me?"

I glared at him, my vision blurry because of the tears. I angrily swiped at my eyes, trying to clear my vision. He stood there, staring at me, obviously waiting for my reply. Instead, I balled up my fist and swung as hard as I could, hitting him square in the nose. He groaned and put a hand up to his face to hold his nose. It was clear that he was stunned by what just happened. After all, this had never happened before. Neither me, nor Bell, has ever gotten violent with dad.

_Well, there's a first time for everything, motherfucker._

I stood my ground, hand still on my aching cheek, and clenched my jaw. I noticed blood starting to trickle down his nose.

_Good, he deserves the pain. He hit me first, damn it. _

"Hitting fucking hurts, doesn't it?" I yelled at him.

He looked down at me, pain evident on his face, but didn't speak.

_Well, that just won't do._

I shoved at his chest. "Answer me, goddamn you!"

He didn't.

I stared in his eyes for a second more, then spoke. "Christ, you're a sorry son of a bitch, you know that? You stay gone for _weeks_, fuckin your whore, then you have the audacity to waltz back in here, out of nowhere, and try to play fucking 'daddy' with me? To yell at me? Over a motherfucking ticket? You think you can smack me around and I won't do anything about it? You don't know me at all!" I ranted into his shocked face.

"Don't you _ever _touch us again," I growled at him.

A look of confusion crossed his eyes.

_That's right motherfucker, I said **us**. Your precious Bella isn't around right now. She ran off, probably hiding in a goddamn corner somewhere._

That thought pissed me off. He didn't respond, just stared into my eyes. He knew something was wrong, that my Bell never acted like this.

**Well, there's a new chick in town, Daddio. You better fucking get used to it.**

I started to back away from him, looking at him in disgust. I turned towards the fridge. I remembered that Bell promised Katy a juice cup.

I was breathing hard, and once my back was to him I realized that, damn it, I needed to fucking calm down. There's a baby in the other room that doesn't need to see my anger.

After a few seconds of silence I told him a low controlled voice, "Get the fuck out of my kitchen."

After pouring some Hawaiin Punch into a sippy cup, I turned and watched him watching me with apprehension. He slowly walked to the counter and got a paper towel, balling it up and holding it to his nose. Then he spoke hesitantly, almost in a whisper.

"Bella?" he rasped.

"GO."

My voice rang loud and clear as I glared at him. I was done talking to my father figure. I needed to be away from him, now, before my carefully constructed calm façade fell away and I got violent again. That definitely wouldn't solve anything. He turned and walked out of the room. I listened to his footsteps pound slowly towards the front door. I heard it open and close. I went to the window and opened it up all the way. The cool breeze rushed in and felt good to my overheated skin. I gulped down deep, cleansing breaths. I watched him walk to his police cruiser, get in, and pull out of the driveway.

_Fucking good riddance._

I counted backwards from ten slowly and then walked back into the living room to find Katy dancing around the floor to the kid show theme-song blaring from the TV, oblivious to what had transpired between me and my father figure. She danced her way over to me and reached for her sippy cup then started drinking it down greedily, humming to the song.

* * *

A/N:

If you read it, please review it :)


	4. Wicked

A/N:

Um, I prolly should've mentioned this last chapter, but here goes ~ all **bold lettering **is internal dialogue for Bella's alternate personality.

And this chapter's warning is... _*drum roll*_ DRUG USE.

Okay, enjoy! :)

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MPOV

I walked upstairs to the bathroom to wash my face and check the damage on my face. I was just expecting to see a pink cheek, so what I saw suprised me. My cheekbone was already starting to bruise a little bit.

_Goddamnit._

Sick of looking in the mirror now, I turned back to the steps and went back downstairs to hang out with Katy. After a few more cartoons, we colored for a bit before she started yawning.

_Wasn't she asleep when she got here?_

Obviously, that didn't matter, because a minute later, her head was laying in the middle of the coloring book and her hand went lax, the crayon falling out of it.

_Okay, then._

I picked her up and took her to Charlie's room, laying her on his bed. After tucking the blankets around her, I walked out, leaving the bedroom door open, and went to my room. Relieved, I knelt down on the floor and started prying up the floorboard where my hidey-hole was. Edward had showed it to us. He put Bell's birthday presents down in it to hide them from her, before he abandoned her. I don't know why he did that, it seems fucking cruel…but, regardless, it gave me a special place to hide the things that were just mine. _Only_ mine. Bell's not allowed to touch it.

I smiled as I pulled out my tin box. I opened it and got out the small bag of marijuana and my rainbow sparkled pipe. This is what I need to relax…I was getting excited just thinking about it. I grabbed my goodies and then went over to the stereo and turned on the Tupac cd. I wanted to blast it, but I was mindful of the sleeping baby across the hall, so I kept it low. Ah, but weed and loud music were my sanctuary. Tupac started singing 'Hail Mary' to me as I opened the bedroom window wide, to ventilate the smoke I was about to produce. I could feel the cool breeze against my face and I smiled.

I took my shoes and socks off, then unbuckled my belt to slip my jeans off, getting comfortable in only my shirt and panties. Satisfied, I went over to the bed and started packing my pipe with the goods, taking a second to inhale the delicious aroma of it all. I got my lighter, flicked it, and lit up. The first inhale was bliss, and I found myself starting to lay back on my pillows and relax. Another inhale, and I was soaring. I sighed. This was what I needed. I closed my eyes and let Tupac's rap drown out the static in my brain.

EPOV

I had rushed through feeding and was now running to Bella's house. I was so worried about her. Her behavior today was just not normal. Her headache, then her silence, then the rush of anger, then that anxiety attack. Something was definitely wrong. I made my legs move faster, intent on being back with my Bella. I had to see her. To see that she was okay.

I was getting close to the house and could hear rap music coming from her window. Something about 'revenge is like the sweetest joy next to getting pussy'.

_What is she listening to?_

That's when I smelled it. Marijuana. I became very familiar with the scent on humans in the 60's. I felt a rush of anger.

_Is she getting high?_

Looks like my worries pertaining to her health, didn't stop at lack of food and sleep.

Damn it.

_Bella, what am I going to do with you?_

I sighed and climbed up to her window. I slipped in gracefully, without making a noise. The sight in front of me made me tense up and stop dead in my tracks. Venom pooled in my mouth and I had to swallow it back convulsively.

My Bella was laying on her bed on top of the covers dressed in only a tight black camisole top and lacey black panties.

_Fuck. I want to taste her._

Her eyes were closed and she looked peaceful. However, after a closer look, she had a few tears streaming down her cheeks and I immediately wondered what was wrong. I couldn't allow myself to speak yet, so I examined the room some more. Her jeans lay, crumpled on the floor by the side of her bed. Her shoes thrown on opposite sides of the room. There was a tin box on the bed with her. She had a pipe in one hand and a lighter in the other. Rap music flowed through the speakers of her stereo, and I watched as she lay completely still, her chest moving up and down from her breathing. If I didn't know any better I'd say she was sleeping.

I glared at the pipe in her hand. This was going to be a problem. I would not allow this to continue.

Just then, her arms moved. I watched as she put the pipe to her mouth and started bringing the lighter over to it.

_No._

I swallowed again, shut off that annoying music, and spoke. "Bella, what the _hell_ do you think you're doing?"

She jumped to a sitting position and her eyes flashed open. She started breathing hard and stared at me.

"Holy buzz kill, Batman!" After she caught her breath, she smirked, "What do you think _you're_ doing? You can't sneak up on me like that."

Then she brought the pipe back to her mouth and lit up, inhaling the smoke. The sight enraged me. I walked over to her and yanked the pipe out of her hand.

She looked stricken and immediately reached for the pipe, which I raised up in the air, out of her reach. "Hey…"she said softly. "Give it back," she whimpered, looking like a little girl who just got her candy taken away from her.

"No, Bella," I told her sternly. "And I told you I was coming back around six, it's 5:53. So I didn't sneak up on you."

I took the pipe and threw it out the window. Then I stuck the lighter in the tin box, which I noticed had more marijuana in it, and closed it up. I set it on the window sill, fully intent on taking it with me later to destroy. I turned back to her then, to give her a glare and stare her down.

Damn it, I can't believe she's doing this. And for fuck's sake, _why_? What's the point?

She sat there, ignoring my intense gaze and looked at me curiously, her eyes traveling up and down my body. Then she moaned.

It caught me off guard....and Christ, it was the sexiest sound I had ever heard.

"Hmmm, you look deliciously fuckable tonight, Edward," she purred. She had a mischievous glint in her eye as she looked up at me through her eyelashes and patted the spot beside her. "You wanna come lay next to me? I missed you."

_Oh. My. Fucking. God._

I exhaled sharply and stared at her in stunned silence. I started to shake my head at her. What was she doing? She knew how dangerous this could be. And when she said things like that…Jesus, just the word 'fuck' coming from her pretty little mouth made me want to do unspeakable things to her body.

That didn't deter her though. "Are you sure?" she asked. "I could make you feel good, baby….make you moan my name. We could…" she paused and took a deep breath then breathed out, "oh, god - do so many thiiiingssss." She smiled up at me.

_Right. She was high. My Bella, under the influence, was a horny Bella. Who knew?_

I could start to smell her arousal and I growled low in my chest. This had to stop. I had to stay in control.

_But...ugh, she is so goddamn sexy. _

NO. Stay in control.

_She is high, damn it. Remember that, and don't let her talk you into this. Stay in control._

Shit.

I stopped the rumbling in my chest and looked at her evenly, then said "Sweetheart put your pants on, ok? Why are they on the floor anyway?"

She didn't answer, instead she just pouted at me and said, "Don't wanna."

"Yes, Bella. Come on," I insisted, then grabbed her hand and pulled her from the bed.

She winced and I looked at her with concern.

_Did I hurt her?_

"Baby, what is it?"

She didn't answer. We stood looking at each other for a few seconds. She seemed fine now, so I shrugged it off. I bent down to pick up her jeans, and handed them to her. That's when I saw it. A bruised mark showing up across her cheek bone.

I dropped the damn jeans and growled. Loudly. I couldn't help it, and I growled again. The neighbors were going to think a lion escaped from the fucking zoo if I didn't stop soon. My lips curled back over my teeth in a snarl and the growl stayed rumbling low in my chest.

_What the fuck happened?_

I tore my eyes away from her marked flesh and looked in her eyes. She simply cocked her head to the side and stared at me. I was trying my best to get control of my anger and she seemed to sense that because she stayed quiet, while I tried to calm myself. She didn't look dazed anymore. All this commotion must be sobering her up.

Then a small cry came from across the hall.

_What the hell?_

I had been too preoccupied with a half-naked Bella to notice there was another heartbeat in the house. I looked towards it and Bella started walking towards it. She went straight into Charlie's room, making shushing noises and then walked back towards me with a little girl in her arms. A _very_ little girl. Her long blonde curls were a mess, hiding some of her face and she had some tears coming down her cheeks. I looked at Bella, curiously.

"Who is this?" I asked softly, trying not to scare the girl. My growling had obviously woken her up.

_Poor little thing._

The little girl looked up at my voice and smiled, then quickly hid her face into Bella neck and started giggling softly.

"Her name is Katy and I'm babysitting her tonight. I need to bring her with me to your house for that fuckawesome dinner Esme is making me. I'll share some with the munchkin, ofcourse."

I stared a second longer at the child, and then answered her. "That's fine, love. Her parents...where are they? When will they be picking her up?" I asked as I started worrying about what everyone's reaction to this little girl would be.

"Her mom will come get her around eleven," Bella said nodding and starting to lightly bounce the little girl in her arms.

"Momma?" the little girl called.

"Nope, sorry kid. Momma will be here later tonight, though," she said, then kissed her cheek.

"Kay, I wanna cowor in my pwincess book, pwease," she asked sweetly.

Bella put the child down and said, "Yeah, go get it and then bring it back up here to color, okay?"

"Kay!" and then the little girl went skipping out of the room. She was adorable.

I looked at Bella's face again, and tried to keep my calm as I eyed her bruised cheek. I reached a gentle hand toward her. I ran my fingertips up and down the length of her arm and stared into her eyes, then whispered, "Love…please tell me what happened?" I pleaded with her.

She didn't answer, instead she asked, "Why do you make those noises?"

I stared at her puzzled by her question. She had heard these animalistic sounds from me before. From _all_ of my family. Why is she acting as though it is new to her?

I blinked, "Bella?"

"Ok, we need to get _that_ little matter straightened out," she said, looking at me pointedly.

My brow furrowed.

_What matter?_

"What matter, love?"

_What is she talking about?_

She gave me a skeptical look and then breathed out, "My name…"

Now I was _really_ confused. "What about it? You don't want to be called Bella anymore? I can call you Isabella, it's beautiful too - "

"No," she interrupted me.

"What?"

She didn't answer me though. Katy came back in the room, a book tucked under her arm and her little hands overflowing with crayons. She sat on the floor and started humming while she scribbled on the paper.

Bella started running her fingers up and down my chest and my arms, occasionally looking at my eyes in wonder. She started murmuring words like, 'gorgeous' and 'growly'. I just stared at her, utterly fucking confused.

After a few minutes of her explorations, I brought the subject up again. "Baby, what happened?" I asked, then ran my cold fingertips in a caress across her cheek, to point out what I was talking about.

"Dad says I'm a bad girl. A stupid girl," was all she said, and very matter-of-factly.

I started to shake my head. That didn't explain _anything_.

But, before I could question her further, she continued on and relayed this afternoon's events to me. While she talked, I ran my cool fingers up and down her back, her sides, her arms, and finally, her bruised flesh, just trying to sooth her. I can't believe he hit her. Nobody harms _my_ Bella. It was all I could do not to hunt him down and snap his fucking neck right now.

"…so I punched him in his big fat nose and it started to bleed." She sighed after her explanation, and then muttered to the side, "motherfucker."

I was surprised at this information. Not to mention her casual use of profanity now. Bella and violence just didn't go together. And that she hurt her own father, was another shock. I cupped her face in my hands and kissed her soft lips, trying to apologize for not being here to prevent it all.

She smiled up at me and hummed in appreciation. "You done rubbing on my ass now?" she asked out of nowhere.

I laughed, just now realizing that I had let my hands drift there, and kissed her cute button nose, whispering, "For now…" then softly patted her delectable little bottom.

I sighed, not wanting to ruin the moment, but knew I had to. I backed away from her then, and gave her a stern look. "Bella, you can't smoke anymore," I told her, pointing to the box on the windowsill. "I'm getting rid of it, and I never want you touching that stuff again, do you understand?"

She looked stunned for a second at the change in my mood, and then she looked at me curiously before squinting her eyes and cocking her head to the side. "Was it wicked of me?"

_Wicked? Uhmm.._

I nodded. "Yes."

_Sure._

"You are not going to be smoking anymore. Do you understand?"

She seemed to consider this for a minute, before I saw the shift in her posture. She lifted her chin up defiantly and then glared at me. "No."

_Only Bella would glare at a vampire._

I simply glared back and said, "I'm serious, Bella. I'm going to do whatever I have to do, to make sure you are healthy. It is my job to protect you, even if it's from yourself. No. More. Smoking." My tone left no room for argument.

She didn't respond, so we stared at each other for a minute. "No more, Bella" I reminded her before I walked over to get the box.

Bella looked from me to the box, then back to me and I held her gaze. Then she started blinking. A lot. Blinking and looking at me. I started to worry that there might be something in her eyes. But then she suddenly stopped blinking and gasped.

"Edward?" she asked, as if she couldn't believe I was here.

_What the hell?_

I sat the box back down. "Yeah?"

She looked around the room, pausing her gaze where Katy was sitting on the floor, busy with her coloring book, then she looked down at her self and gasped again. She looked at the floor with frantic eyes, and then practically lunged for her jeans beside me. She started putting them on in a hurry, muttering apologies to me.

"Bella?"

She looked at me, her hands still fumbling at the buckle on her belt. There were so many emotions running across her face right now, it was throwing me for a loop.

"Yeah?" she asked. Then she turned away from me and looked at the clock, then out the window at the night sky. I heard her whisper 'shit' before she looked at me apologetically.

I grabbed a hold of the tops of her shoulders, forcing her to look at me. "I really think you need to tell me what going on, love. Why are you acting like this?"

She looked down, ashamed and whispered, "I'm sorry…" her voice trembled a bit.

_No, please don't cry._

I put a finger to her chin and lifted her face back up towards mine. "For what?" I asked, and used the pad of my thumb to wipe a few tears away. I was so confused, it was driving me insane. "Baby, what's wrong?"

Just then Alice appeared in the doorway and happily announced, "Dinner time, Bella!"

Katy startled at the noise and looked up at Alice. Alice smiled softly down at her and gave her a little wave. Katy stood up, coloring book completely forgotten, and ran over to Bella, wrapping her little arms around Bella's legs, trying to hide her face.

_Wow, she's a cutie, huh_ Alice thought.

Bella sighed and bent down, bringing Katy up in her arms. Katy buried her face in Bella's neck.

_Shy, though_ Alice added.

I just nodded at her.

"Hey," Bella whispered, rubbing Katy back and swaying slightly. "Look at me," she said softly.

Katy lifted her gaze at Bella and I saw Bella smile. Katy immediately smiled back.

"You wanna play with my friend?" she asked Katy.

Katy looked at Alice and stared at her. Alice gazed back with a smile on her face.

"Will you color with me, Katy?" Alice asked.

Katy smiled and nodded so Bella put her down and Katy walked over to Alice.

"Hi!" she said brightly to Alice.

Alice giggled and said 'hi' back.

"You wanna cowor with my pink cwayon?" Katy offered, holding out said pink crayon.

It looked like they were going to get along just fine, so I turned my attention back on Bella.

Bella held my gaze for a second, before she broke it and wiped at her eyes. She looked over towards where Alice and Katy were coloring and spoke.

"Great Alice, just give me a minute to use the bathroom real quick, and we can leave. Katy is pretty much ready to go, we just have to put her carseat in your car," she said and then she strolled out of the room.

I went over to where Alice was and sat down beside her. Katy smiled up at me, then went back to her picture.

"Any ideas?" Alice asked me, referring to what happened earlier at school.

I just shook my head. "I'm so confused. Her behavior is all over the fucking place today. Did you know I came here and caught her lighting up a pipe? She was getting high, Alice," I said through gritted teeth then ran my fingers roughly through my hair, frustrated. I picked up the tin box and handed it to Alice as evidence. Then I snarled, "And then I found out that Charlie hit her across her face this afternoon because of a speeding ticket she got in the mail. She has this _bruise_," I choked out, unable to finish the sentence.

"Oh my god," Alice whispered.

"I know," was all I could say.

"She is so broken," she whispered sadly.

I let out a pained sound from my throat and Bella walked back in the room. She had washed her face and brushed her hair.

I gave her a small smile, "Are you hungry?"

She nodded and picked Katy up. Katy started to whine and reach for her crayons but Bella just shook her head. "Alice is putting them in your bag for you."

"Edward, will you go install her carseat, please? I'm going to go refill her sippy cup," she said, then took Katy downstairs and went to the kitchen.

I followed her down and grabbed the carseat by the door, going out to Alice porsche in the driveway. Just as I was finishing buckling it in, I turned around and saw Bella standing there. Immediately, Katy reached her arms out to me. I hesitated and Bella noticed.

"It's ok," she reassured me.

I sighed.

_Alright. Remember: Delicate as a soap bubble, handle with fucking care._

I put my hands under Katy's tiny arms and brought her inside the car, over to the car seat, sitting her down in it and buckling her in.

Well, that was easy.

_Good job, Cullen._

She smiled up at me. "Juice?" she asked, holding her hand out.

I turned to Bella and mimicked Katy. "Juice?" I asked, holding my hand out.

Bella snickered and handed me the little cup with the wierd looking top on it. I handed it to Katy, "Here you go, little one."

"Thankoo.." she said, then put the cup to her mouth.

Alice got in the backseat with her, holding Katy's bag and handed me the keys, telling me to sit with Bella. I opened the passenger door for Bella, but stopped her before she got in.

"Hey," I said softly, getting her attention.

She bit her lip. "What's up?"

I leaned in, kissing her cheek and nuzzling her neck. I breathed in deeply, taking her scent into my body and loving the burn in my throat.

"Bella...love, will you please, please, talk to me. I am so worried about you. I love you," I whispered into her ear.

She looked at me sadly. After a minute she finally responded. "I love you, too," she said back, and I could have swore I heard her whimper.

I wrapped my arms around her, hugging her to me tightly. "Please just tell me what's wrong...fuck, why are you so sad?" I breathed against her neck.

"I'll tell you what's going on, I promise. But not right now. Not outside in my driveway, standing next to Alice's car with a hungry two year old waiting inside of it," she whispered into my chest.

I sighed.

_Damn it, she has a point._

"Alright..."

She got in the car and I shut her door gently behind her. I got in the driver's seat and started up the car, listening to Katy and Alice singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in the back seat.

I held Bella's hand during the drive to my house. I needed to know what was going on with my angel. I was determined to find out by the end of the night.


	5. Dinner Time

BPOV

We were on our way to the Cullens, with Katy in tow, and I was nervous as hell. Edward says he loves me and will never leave…but, I mean, come on. How am I supposed to believe that? He did leave, right after he said he didn't want me anymore. Then he says it was all a lie? What else has been a lie? I mean, can you blame me for my skepticism?

_I think not._

How am I supposed to talk about my problem, while being sure he won't disappear in the morning? I already know that my split-personality hang up can get complicated when it comes to socializing with other people. They are just left dumbfounded and confused, most of the time, and I have just never cared enough to talk to them about it. I just let them think that I'm crazy/having a bad day/PMSing/moody, or what have you.

But Edward is different. All of the Cullens are. If I want them in my life, which I do…very much so, then they have to know about what's going on with me, so they can understand it. So they can accept it.

_But what if they don't accept it?_

**They will accept me, Bell. After all, I am awesome. I'll help you explain it, doll. So don't worry your pretty little head** she told me. **Such a pretty little head...so fucking pretty** her voice sang, but soon faded to a whisper.

I squeezed Edward's hand and let myself relax into the leather seat. They will find out about it sooner or later, better to just get it over with now so that it's out in the open and I don't have to keep torturing myself with the 'what-ifs'. I fucking hate 'what-ifs'. They give me a goddamn headache.

"Bewwa?" I heard a small voice behind me say.

"Yeah baby?" I called, without taking my eyes off the flashing lights and colors on the stereo system in the dash.

"I'm hungwy…" she said in a slight whiny tone.

"Yeah, me too. We're almost there, okay?"

"Where we goin to?"

"My friend's house. There mommy made dinner for us. Make sure you tell her 'thank you' when we get there, okay munchkin?"

"Kay. Do they got cookies?"

I laughed lightly. "I don't know, sweets, why don't you ask Alice? We're going to her house."

I sighed and listened to the conversation happening in the backseat now. I wonder how everyone will react to Katy. She is very shy, but friendly at the same time.

_Will she be scared?_

I shouldn't worry so much…obviously it will be fine. Alice hasn't seen anything. After all, she knew about Katy coming over with me to dinner as soon as I decided to babysit her.

Edward leaned over to whisper in my ear, "Your little friend is very sweet. I'm sure everyone will adore her," he assured me then kissed my cheek.

I gasped. The kiss actually hurt a little.

_What the hell?_

I put my hand to my cheek, and Marie showed me a flash of this afternoon's events.

**_"Fuck you," I said, glaring into his eyes._**  
**_*SMACK*_**  
**_I put my hand to my cheek and could feel tears smarting my eyes. I started to clench my fist._**  
**_"Don't you ever talk to me that way again, young lady! Do you hear me?"_**  
**_I glared at him, my vision blurry because of the tears. I angrily swiped at my eyes, trying to clear my vision. He stood there, staring at me, obviously waiting for my reply. Instead, I balled up my fist and swung as hard as I could, hitting him square in the nose. He groaned and put a hand up to his face to hold his nose._**

**That motherfucker will never touch you again, Bell. Don't worry about a thing doll, I took care of it.**

"Oh, I'm sorry, love. Does your cheek hurt much? I can get you some ice when we get to the house. I'm sorry baby…"

"Oh my god," I whispered.

I can't believe my dad hit me! And, holy shit, I hit him back? Or, Marie hit him back. Whatever, it's all the same to him.

"It's ok baby," Edward said and then held his cold hand up to my cheek cradling it.

I just sat there, still trying to process this information.

_What else happened?_

I noticed we were pulling up into the mansion's driveway now, and put those thoughts in the back of my mind. It was time to introduce Katy and eat some dinner. My stomach growled at the thought.

_Had I even eaten all my lunch?_

**Nope. That sandwich you picked out was kinda gross, Bell. I'm talkin' puke-worthy** she said with disgust.

I sighed. _It tasted really good, what are you talking about?_

**No, it was nasty. You're lucky I threw it away when I did. It was probably rotten. Gross cafeteria food...**

_It was perfectly fine._

**It was not, it was fucking gross** she argued.

_Whatever._

Edward came over and opened my door for me. I got out and leaned the seat forward, to see Katy already reaching for me, bouncing in her seat a little.

"Okay, gimme a sec, Katy. I'll get you out of there," I told her while unbuckling her seatbelt and then pulled her into my arms. She latched onto my neck and I closed the passenger door behind me.

"I've got her bag, Bella," Alice informed me.

"Thank you, Alice," I responded and then took the hand that Edward was holding out to me.

We walked up to the front door to have it being opened for us by Esme. She had a bright smile on her face and came out to hug me.

"Bella, sweetheart," she cooed while wrapping me in a motherly hug. She gently patted Katy's back as she let me go.

"Hi, Esme. Umm…" I started, while gesturing to Katy in my arms, "I hope this is alright? I'm babysitting…" I said, unsure of what else to say about the subject.

"Oh, of course it's alright dear. Alice already informed everyone that the little one would be joining us tonight. It's perfectly fine," she assured me.

I smiled and we walked into the house. Everyone was in the front room, ready to greet us. Everyone. I'm sure it was mostly about greeting Katy though. Which was good. The sooner she knew them, the sooner she would be comfortable here. I looked at all of them, then to Edward to see him nod at me a little.

I sighed, "Ok, here goes…"

Katy's little arms were still tight around my neck, something she usually did around new people or new places. I let go of Edward's hand and rubbed her back for a few seconds, while staring at the vampires before me. I mouthed to them, 'she's shy', to which they all nodded and continued standing there, waiting patiently. I decided to go for 'bright and playful' as opposed to the 'calm and luring' technique I would usually do if she had just woken up.

"Hey munchkin!" I said happily.

She lifted her head and smiled at me, "Hi!" she squeaked back at me.

I heard light laughter in the room, but kept my focus on Katy. Her arms were still pretty snug on me and I held her tightly.

"Do you wanna meet my friends?" She didn't respond, she just stared up at me and sighed a little, so I tried again. "They are really nice," I said in a persuasive tone. Then I whispered in her ear, "I'm pretty sure they have cookies, too."

She started giggling a little, so I started tickling her sides gently, goading her on. After a second , she was full-on laughing and I nuzzled her neck, tickling her there too. Tickling always loosened her up. After I stopped and her laughter died down, I looked up to find all the vampires smiling brightly at our little display.

I looked at Katy, who was keeping her eyes trained on my face, and nodded my head towards the crowded room. She let go of my neck and I moved her onto my hip, as she turned to face the Cullen coven. She gave a little wave, and they mimicked her in an equally small wave. At that moment, I was very thankful that they were letting me take this at a slow pace.

I turned to my side to see Edward with a smile on his face and gave him a kiss then said, "I'm going to introduce her to the family."

He nodded and I walked up to Carlisle first.

"This is my friend, Carlisle," I told Katy.

"Hello, Katy," Carlisle said softly.

She stared up into his eyes and smiled. She seemed to be fascinated with their eyes. She pointed at his with her little finger and looked at me, in question.

"Pretty, huh?"

"Pwetty…" she whispered and nodded in agreement. She looked back at Carlisle and greeted him. "Hi," she said shyly. He smiled down at her and she giggled a little bit, tucking herself into my side more, and laying her head on my shoulder.

And so, the introductions went along down the line. Katy seemed to be fine with all of them. When we got to Rosalie to exchange the 'hellos', I couldn't tell if she wanted to grab Katy up and hold on for dear life, or run out the door, stomping her feet and throwing a fit, whining about 'why can't I have a baby' like she usually did.

_She is so fucking annoying._

**Agreed** I heard Marie murmur inside my head. **I don't like her.**

"I'm hungwy," Katy repeated what she had said in the car.

This seemed to get Esme into full mother-mode again, because she dashed off to the kitchen, announcing that she was making our plates. I muttered a 'thanks' and then walked over to the dining room table, placing Katy in the chair next to mine. After I got seated I looked over to her and saw the top of her blonde head peeking out over the tabletop.

_Well, that won't work._

"Ummm…" I said as Edward walked into the room. He saw the same little head peeking out and started laughing a little. I turned to him with a smile on my face. "I need something that will work as a booster seat. Umm…a thick book, maybe? Phone book?"

"I'll get it!" I heard Emmett say.

I yelled out, "Thanks, Em!" and then he was walking into the room with not one, but two phone books. I picked Katy up out of the chair while he situated them.

"There you go, shorty," he said with a wink towards Katy and she beamed up at him in response. He smiled back and Esme came into the dining room with our plates in her hands.

I sat Katy back down and pulled her chair close to me, because I knew I was going to have to help her eat. Edward took his seat at my other side and rested his elbows on the table, watching all of my exchanges with Katy very closely.

Esme placed a plate in front of each of us, then placed her hand on my shoulder. "Enjoy," she said simply.

I smiled up at her, "Thanks" and then Katy exclaimed loudly, "Yummy!"

Emmett and Edward laughed at her little outburst while I started cutting up her chicken. Esme patted Katy's head softly and then went back into the kitchen to clean up.

Edward interrupted me, "Let me, love," gesturing towards the knife in my hands.

I nodded and pushed Katy's plate toward him.

"Hey…" Katy protested with a small pout.

Edward smiled softly at her, "Just a second, Katy. We have to make your food bite-size," he informed her while cutting the meat.

Before she could respond he gently nudged the plate back over to her, complete with bite size pieces of chicken, and she beamed up at him in appreciation.

She went straight for her fork, with sharp edges on it, and I shot my hand out to cover it and stop her.

"Uh-uh," I said firmly.

She immediately took her hand away and whispered, "sowwy," to me while eyeing her chicken intently.

I picked up her fork and stabbed a piece of chicken, holding it up to her mouth. She bit it off and chewed appreciatively, humming the whole time. Once she was chewing, I allowed myself a few bites of my food.

_Damn, this chicken is good._

I looked over at Katy and hummed along with her. She nodded in agreement and I gave her another bite of her food.

Edward stayed silent while watching me feed Katy and have little conversations with her, encouraging her to eat a few bites of her corn. A few times, he would touch my cheek and caress where the bruise was forming. I heard a low rumble in his chest when he would do that. I knew he was very angry at my father. I wasn't sure what I was going to do about that situation. It hurt to think about it.

_God, I can't believe he had hit me._

**Don't you worry about what that fucker did to our pretty face, Bell. He won't be doing it again.**

Between Marie and Edward, I'm sure that statement was very true.

I finished all of my food, much to Edward's satisfaction and it was clear that Katy was finished. More than half her food was still on her plate, but that was because she got the same serving sizes as me. There was no way she could eat that much. When she started to kick her feet and whine about wanting to get down, I told her to wait a minute and asked Edward to make sure she stayed seated while I got our plates and took them to the sink. When I came back into the dining room, it seemed Katy and Edward were deep in conversation.

"…she's my best fwiend," Katy smiled up at him.

"That's really nice," Edward responded softly.

"Hey," I said, announcing my return.

"Bewwa, I want down…" Katy whined again.

I nodded and reached for her. She lifted up her arms, allowing me to pick her up.

"Hey baby, we were just talking about you," Edward smirked at me.

"Oh yeah?" I asked, then turned toward Katy. "I hope it was all good stuff," I said while giving Katy an Eskimo kiss.

"It was!" she announced and giggled.

"I hope so," I smiled at her.

Edward came over to my side and wrapped his arm around my shoulder, whispering in my ear, "We need to talk, Bella," he reminded me, then kissed my bruised cheek.

I nodded to him, and said quietly, "I know, I just need to get Katy situated and entertained. There are a few movies in her bag that Alice packed up for her, and her coloring books are in there too."

He rubbed slow circles into my lower back, "Ok, angel," he nodded and led me and Katy back out to the living room where everyone was gathered.

I sat Katy down on her feet and pointed to her bag. "Go get your stuff for me," I told her while I sat down on the floor.

She nodded and skipped over to her bag. When she brought it back over to me, I opened it up and looked through my options. I grabbed her princess coloring book, and a pack of crayons, then three dvd's out of the bag. I laid the movies out in front of her.

"Ok, shorty, pick which one you want to watch while I take care of a few things in the other room," I told her.

She eyed the movies carefully, as though this were a very important decision, but after a few minutes, she eventually picked Monsters, Inc. Holding it up to my face, she said, "Pwease?"

I nodded and pointed her towards Jasper. She turned to look back at me, puzzled, and shoved the dvd back in my face.

I shook my head and explained, "Munchkin, the dvd player is Jasper's. Go ask him, very nicely, if he will put it on for you so you can watch it. Ok?"

She turned slowly back to Jasper's direction and he smiled softly down at her.

She gave a small, short-lived smile back and without taking her eyes off him, leaned in to whisper in my ear, "Is he nice?"

I nodded.

"Is he gonna say yes?" she whispered again.

Jasper smiled wider at that.

Everyone could here our quiet conversation, but she didn't know that.

"Go ask him and find out," I whispered back to her and softly patted her behind, sending her on her way.

She stayed planted by my side though, and kept staring at him. She reached out and started absentmindedly running her tiny fingers through my hair. I softly rubbed her back in return and after a minute, she whispered in my ear again, "Will you come wif me?"

I shook my head slowly, "You're a big girl," I whispered back. "I'll be right here the whole time, munchkin."

Now she finally looked at me and whispered with conviction, "Pwomise?"

I nodded seriously and held out my pinky for her to take. "I swear it, baby," I said softly.

She took my pinky in her own and after we swung our joined hands back and forth a few times, I gave her my best reassuring smile and she stepped away from me. Twenty-six very small, very shy steps later, she was standing in front of Jasper's seated form on the recliner. He had smiled at her all throughout her journey over to the couch and kept eye contact with her, trying to reassure her. She stared up at him, but didn't talk so he broke the silence first.

"Hi there, little darlin'," he spoke with a southern twang, and she finally smiled back at him.

She offered the dvd to him in her little outstretched hands and said shyly, "Pwease?"

He immediately nodded, earning himself a beaming smile from her and then he took the dvd out of her hands, and walked over to the entertainment center.

She ran back over to me, excited and smiling brightly and exclaimed, "He said yes!" then wrapped her little arms around my neck, earning herself laughter all around.

I nodded, "I told you so," I said playfully.

She just nodded in acknowledgment and let go of my neck to stand in front of me.

"You're a big girl," I reminded her.

"I am," she stated with confidence.

I stood up then, and Edward wrapped his arms around my waist from behind and cooed in my ear, "She adores you."

I nodded slowly. I already knew this.

He kept speaking into my ear, though, his cool breath, a welcome caress against my aching cheek, "I'm really enjoying listening to her thoughts…her mind is so refreshingly innocent."

I put my own arms on top of his that were around my waist and ran my fingers lightly over the skin on his hands, thankful that they were being accepting of Katy.

As the tv screen lit up, signaling the start of the movie, Katy squealed excitedly. She tugged on my jeans and told me, "My monsters are comin on!" pointing to the big screen tv hanging from the wall.

Edward loosened his arms around me and I squatted down to Katy's level. "Ok, your princess book is right there on the floor," I said pointing to it, "and I am going to be in the next room if you need me, ok? I'll be in the room where we had dinner."

She nodded, eyed glued to the screen.

_I think she's addicted to television…I should talk to her mother about that._

**Yes. Yes, you should** Marie agreed with me. **Look at her…she's in a fucking trance!**

I stood back up and faced Edward, grabbing his hand to anchor me. I needed his reassurance right now. I needed to know that after I told him everything, nothing would change. I needed to know that he wouldn't leave me.

He nodded towards Carlisle and Alice who were watching us and lightly squeezed my hand. We started walking back to the dining room, Carlisle and Alice following, his gaze on me the entire time. I sat down in the seat I had occupied a minute ago, and everyone else took a seat around me, Edward to my left. He kept my hand in his and started lightly stroking my wrist with his cool fingertips.

EPOV

Ok, the evening was going well, so far. Everyone seemed to take a liking to little Katy and I could tell by her thoughts that she felt comfortable here, as long as Bella wasn't too far away. Bella seemed to be Katy's security blanket. And it really was precious how those two interacted with each other. I enjoyed watching them, although it brought along a feeling of deep regret that I would never be able to provide Bella with a baby. She seemed to be great with kids. Actually, 'great', was an understatement. She was absolutely perfect with that little girl. Their playful banter, her protectiveness over the child, the gentle way she handled her with those soft caresses and kisses she would occasionally give Katy. Even the way Bella had scolded her about the fork and insisted that she eat her vegetables was handled with care. She would make a fantastic mother. I found myself becoming sad with these thoughts.

**Don't dwell on it. It won't do anyone a bit of good to feel sorry for yourself. Of course you can't give her a child. You're a monster.**

I sighed and looked over at Bella as I continued to lightly run my fingers along her wrist. We were seated at the table with Carlisle and Alice and I could tell that my Bella was nervous. I wasn't sure about what though. Yes, her behavior had been strange throughout the day, but it was nothing that I couldn't handle. I just needed to know that she was alright. That she was feeling okay. It was all of the _not knowing_ that was driving me insane.

I called this little meeting, so I would speak first. I cleared my throat, "Carlisle, I would like for you to give Bella a sort-of check up. I'm sure you have noticed that she is a little underweight now, and she has been losing a lot of sleep in the past, as well as recently. I was wondering when and if I could get her on some vitamins?"

I turned to look at Bella, who was already looking at me. "They will make you feel better love, give you more energy." She nodded, so I turned back to talk to my father. "Also, her behavior today seemed a little erratic. She had a panic attack in the school parking lot and she expressed extreme anger towards a student in class today. I couldn't calm her down." I heard Bella breathe out a shaky breath and I turned to look at her, reassuringly. "It's alright, sweetheart. Whatever is going on, with your health, or your moods…we'll take care of it. We will help you. Always. I love you."

I gave her a small smile and she tried to smile back but it came out as more of a grimace. I leaned forward and gave her a kiss. "I love you," I repeated for the millionth time today. She nodded and murmured a 'love you too', before giving my hand what I'm sure was a death grip for her. I let her continue to assault my hand and used my other one to lightly run my fingers through her hair. I knew how she loved that.

Carlisle spoke up then. "Of course, you can buy her some vitamins whenever you like," he said to me then turned to face Bella, "they will be to sure to improve your health and energy."

She nodded.

She had a little worry wrinkle coming out on her forehead from the expression on her face, so I smoothed it out with my thumb, then kissed her forehead. "My beautiful girl," I murmured against her skin.

When I pulled back to look at her, she was smiling softly at me.

"I love you, Edward," she told me.

I gave her my crooked smile that I knew she loved so much, "I love you too, my sweet Bella."

The expression on her face turned serious as she spoke again, "You have to promise me, _swear_ to me, that whatever happens tonight…whatever you find out, whatever I tell you…you won't leave. Promise me," she demanded.

I squinted my eyes at her in worry, "I promise you, Bella, I'm not going to leave."

She continued on, "Even if it's 'for my own good', " she said, doing little hand quotes for a second, "you can't go anywhere," she stressed. "Do you understand, Edward? I won't live through it," she said in a sad, breathy voice. She took a deep breath then said in a steady, firm tone, "I swear to God, I'll kill myself," looking me dead in the eye.

_Like hell you will._

My eyes widened at her declaration. "Bella, no," I told her in a hard voice. "I'm not going anywhere. You are my life," I repeated with conviction. Before I could stop myself, I snarled at her, "And don't you _ever_ fucking say that again," as I met her stare dead-on with one of my own. I'm sure my eyes had turned black with fury.

She didn't recoil from me, or show any fear from my lashing out at her, she just simply, nodded and sighed, "Okay…" and I softened my gaze at her reply.

Carlisle interrupted our staring contest. "Bella, what could you have to say, or…what would happen tonight that would make you think Edward would want to leave you?

She turned her gaze on Carlisle then. "You'll see…" she whispered cryptically with a troubled look.

He seemed puzzled, but after a minute let the subject drop and asked, "What happened to your cheek, Bella?"

She tore her eyes away from him and looked down into her lap, ashamed. She started mumbling, "Ummm…well, uhhh…"

I interrupted her and told Carlisle what had happened between her and Charlie this afternoon. I couldn't help the low rumbling in my chest that came out with my explanation, but he seemed to understand my anger.

In fact, he showed a bit of his own. "I will have to speak with him," was all he said on the matter, though.

Getting back to the matter at hand, he said, "Bella, I can prescribe you something for your sleep loss. The medicine would guarantee that you get a healthy 8 hours a night, alright?"

"That's fine," Bella told him, keeping eye contact.

He continued, "Also, there are some protein shakes that Edward can buy, along with your vitamins, at the health food store in Port Angeles that would help you gain some weight. I can monitor your progress on the scale weekly, if that's alright with you?"

She nodded.

He nodded back in response, then said, "Alright, I'll be right back."

He got up from his seat and rushed off to his office. A few seconds later, he was back at the table, a small floor weight scale, a leather book, and a piece of paper in his hands. He placed the prescription for sleeping meds down in front of Bella, and I snatched it up, folding it and put it in my pocket.

She smiled at me and then got up. Carlisle placed the scale on the floor by her feet. She stepped on it, and after second, the scale's digital response came across the screen.

98lbs. With her shoes on. So that meant she was _really_ somewhere are 96lbs.

I grimaced and Carlisle quickly recorded the information in his leather bound journal.

"Alright Bella," he said looking back up at her, "Our goal is going to be 110lbs. How does that sound?"

"Good," she responded and gave him a small smile. "Thanks, Carlisle."

"Always a pleasure, Bella. You're my favorite patient, you know," he said lightly while returning her smile.

I took her hand and led her to back to her seat. After we were both sitting back down, I asked Bella if she would please explain her behavior today. Carlisle took his seat again, and I knew that we had both Carlisle and Alice's full attention.

I started to lightly rub her slightly swollen wrist that she had gotten from hitting her father earlier, and asked, "What happened today, love? Both at school and this evening. I couldn't calm you down when you were railing on Newton, and then earlier this evening, I came up to your room to catch you smoking marijuana with Katy across the hall," I said, slightly exasperated. "Smoking weed is unacceptable, but to do it around a _baby_? Bella, you know better," I scolded her.

She nodded her head and a look of suprise came across her face. Before I could continue on, she held up her handing, stopping me. Maybe she's finally ready to explain herself.

She looked me in the eyes and said, "Edward..."

"Yes, Bella?" I asked in anticipation.

"You know I never lie to you...keep that in mind, alright?"

I nodded, wondering where she was going with this.

"I don't know what you're talking about..."she shook her head a little. "Smoking weed? I don't do that. And even if I did, I would _never_ do it around Katy," she said sincerely.

I shook my head, disappointed that she was, in fact, lying now. I know I wasn't hallucinating seeing her beautiful body laying half naked on that bed with a fucking pipe in her hand, ready to light it up.

"Bella," I said reproachfully, ready to just put her over my knee and stop all this nonsense, once and for all. I was getting fed up. "I saw you. I took the pipe away from you, and threw it out the window. I even yelled at you."

She looked sad and just shook her head slowly in response.

I paused, staring at her, watching the pitiful shake of her head. "Don't you remember?" I asked, truly concerned now.

"That wasn't me, Edward," she whispered so low I wouldn't have been able to hear it if not for my vampire senses.

"What do you mean it wasn't you? Bella, it _was_ you - I was there, why are you lying?" I said, my voice rising a little.

She shook her head again and gave me a desperate look, "I'm not lying, Edward."

Alice interrupted us. "Bella, what exactly do you mean, when you say 'it wasn't me'? You're going to have to be specific hun, and stop beating around the bush."

Bella looked like she was starting to panic a little. She whispered, "I'm not lying," through harsh, rushed breaths while giving Alice a pained look.

Carlisle, watching the scene play out before him, murmured, "Interesting..." while Alice and I tried to calm Bella.

After a minute, Bella's breathing slowed and she looked down at her lap, playing with the hem of her shirt. All was silent except for the tv playing in the other room. When Bella lifted her head back up, I was planning on starting back up with my questions, now that she was calm, but the look on her face along with Carlisle's thoughts made me pause.

_Let her speak first, Edward. Give her a chance to explain_ Carlisle's thoughts rang clear in my mind.

I nodded and all our gazes were fixed on Bella, waiting for her to start making sense of the fuckery that had happened today. I was desperate for answers, for an explanation.

_What's wrong with my Bella?_

Bella's stare was penetrating and it was trained on me. She cocked her head to the side and smirked. I smirked back at her, causing her smirk to turn into a devilish smile.

"Hello, Edward..." she purred.

Her voice was sharp and sure, when just a few seconds ago it had been shy and quiet.

Fucking confused, _again_, I asked her, "Bella, wha-"

She interrupted me with a hard look and a sharp tone, "It's Marie."

_...what?_

_Come again?_ Alice thought

_Amazing!_ Carlisle seemed a little too excited about all of this for my liking.

A second later, the rest of my family's thoughts from the next room clouded my head.

_She doesn't wanna be called Bella anymore?_ Emmett questioned.

_Oh dear..._ Esme worried.

_This is going to be a problem_ Jasper's thoughts informed me.

_So she's crazy now?_ Rosalie guessed.

I growled at her thoughts. No matter what this was about, my Bella was _not_ crazy.

I was interrupted from my vengeful thoughts towards my sister, by Bella's slight giggle. I stared at her, slightly confused about what was happening, but before I could talk again, she beat me to it.

"So growly..." she chuckled, "hmmm, so motherfucking sexy," she said with a smile.


	6. Fireball

MPOV

While I was smiling at my own personal sex god, I noticed that the other Cullens were coming into the room and taking a seat around this big, long, wooden table. Well, all of them except for blondie.

_Good, I don't fucking like her anyway._

I know from Bell's memories that the one named Rosalie is a particularly rude motherfucking bitch. We will not be getting along.

_So, this is a family meeting now? Wow, I'm fucking important._

"Marie…?" I heard Carlisle hesitantly ask me.

I looked in his direction as a response, but not making eye contact yet, and raised my eyebrows. "Yes…?" I mimicked his hesitance.

"Where's Bella, Marie?"

I smirked, glad that he wanted to play my game. I met his eyes and said, "Hiding."

Everyone's eyes grew a little bit wide with that response.

_Ohh, this is gonna be fun!_

After a few seconds of silence, I put my amusement aside and remembered my responsibility tonight. I gave the room a quick once-over then turned my gaze back to the direction of the table, "Where's Katy?" I asked to no one in particular.

"She's fine," Carlisle replied.

I narrowed my eyes a little in irritation. "That's not what I asked, Doc. _Where_ is Katy?" I asked more forcefully.

He ignored my slight hostility with ease.

_Hmm…interesting._

"She is in the front room with Rosalie watching her cartoon movie. Does that answer your question, Marie?"

"Yes," I replied with a nod. "Yes it does. Why the fucking Rose vampire, though? I don't like her."

"I'm sorry you feel that way, Marie, but I assure you that she won't harm the child."

_Harm?_

"I never said she would hurt the kid, I just don't motherfucking _like_ her. I've seen that she's a rude, conceited bitch and you better hope that what you say is the truth." I narrowed my eyes in warning, "If she harms one hair on her head -"I growled but was interrupted.

"She won't," he assured me again, but in a firmer tone.

I could hear that now familiar growling rumble coming from the other room, and then was surprised to see my Edward turn his head in that direction and growl back. Loudly. And then wrap one of my hands up in both of his.

I looked at him in question. "Arguing?" I asked once he quieted down.

He just nodded, looking at me with apprehension.

_Jesus, is he scared?_

I decided to voice my concern. "Are you scared?" I asked with a penetrating stare.

"No," he answered sincerely, in a steady tone of voice. And I believed him.

_Damn, looks like I just lost ten bucks._

I smirked and licked my dry lips. "Aw, well that's good…"

He smiled back, but I saw how it didn't reach his eyes.

Next thing I knew, my favorite little buddy came running into the room, crying. Her eyes frantically searching until they landed on me, and then she bolted over to me, trying to climb her way up into my lap.

"Shit, the growl noises scared her…" I heard Edward whisper.

EPOV

My Bella had split personality disorder. This is fucking mind-blowing. I know about it, I've read about it, learned about it in all those college classes I took. But to handle somebody with it…someone as special to me as Bella was, is going to be a completely strange experience. I am quickly beginning to realize the huge task at hand.

I love her and can deal with all of her imperfections, including this disorder, it's just that I am more afraid that I am going to mess up somehow. How do I handle this Marie person? And the more I think about it, the more today's events make sense. Bella wasn't acting like herself, and I never knew until this moment how true that statement actually was.

I watched as a distressed, crying little girl, tried to climb her way up into Bella' lap. Or…Marie's lap. Shit, is Marie good with kids? How will she handle Katy?

_Well, she seemed pretty protective a second ago. Threatening a vampire, and all…_

Right.

Marie picked Katy up and immediately cradled her to her chest making shushing noises and rocking a bit. Then she glared at me and scolded harshly, "No more growling around the baby!"

I nodded to her.

"And tell blondie the same thing. I will not have that cunt scaring Katy with all her bitchy growling. If she wants to say something to me, then she can walk her high heels over to this motherfucking table and say it to my face, instead of fucking growling from another goddamn room. The same room with a two-year old in it, for Christ sakes!"

I completely agreed. "She can hear everything you just said, love," I told her, letting her know that I didn't have to repeat everything she just said.

It was quite a speech. Everyone at the table just kept watching the display that was Marie. All eyes seemed glued to her. It would seem she's not just an angry person, she can be affectionate as well…Katy was proving that right now.

She started kissing the top of Katy head while the child cried into her shoulder. "Katy, doll…" her voice softly sang. "My special girl…what's wrong, sweets? What happened to my baby?" she cooed into the child's ear.

Katy lifted her head to answer, "The lady in there," she pointed to the door she just came through leading to the living room, "was makin scawy noises!" she cried out, sniffling and sobbing.

"Shhhh, I know, I know…" she whispered to Katy. Then she looked away from the crying child and gave the door a death glare. Before I could tell her that Rose didn't mean Katy any harm, Marie spoke up, "Get rid of her," she said to no one in particular. Then she turned to Emmett and demanded, "Now. Take your bitch for a walk or something," she instructed. "I don't want her around Katy anymore, she is obviously not good with children." When Emmett hesitated at the insult to Rose, she yelled at him, "I said NOW, goddamnit!" slapping her hand now on the table. "Don't make me repeat myself," she warned.

He glared at her.

She glared right back and I joined in.

_No one glares at my woman but me._

Carlisle broke the awkward tension. "Emmett, why don't you and Rose go hunting for a while, alright? Give us a while to straighten this out."

Emmett nodded and walked out, taking Rosalie with him.

We all remained quiet and still while Marie calmed Katy down and got the situation under control. She left the room for a second to get a warm wash cloth to wipe away Katy's tears and she let her blow her nose. Then she bought Katy's coloring supplies into the room and set her up a spot on the table in front of Esme. Katy sat in Esme's lap and started to color with a smile on her face now. Esme seemed to be enjoying Katy's company a lot. When she sat back down in her seat next to me, I asked her the question that had been bothering me for the past twenty minutes.

"Marie, how long?"

She gave me a quizzical look.

"How long have you been around?" I tried to clarify my question.

She nodded in understanding, "It was November. I know this because I have an obsessive compulsion with checking times and dates, Edward. My Bell has the same habit. Have you noticed?"

I slowly shook my head.

"Hmmm, maybe you should pay more attention," she said sharply.

I felt compelled to apologize. So I did. "Sorry…"

She smirked. "For what?"

I shrugged. "Not paying attention…?" I answered as if it was a question.

Her face instantly fell and she gave me a hard look. "You are so goddamn clueless, Edward. What you should be sorry for is leaving in the first place. And for fucking lying to my Bell. All because you're too cowardly to be truthful and communicate with the person you say is 'your everything', 'your life'. What the fuck ever, Edward. Until you learn how to be truthful with us, all of that sweet-talkin bullshit is just _that_. Bullshit. Do you hear me?"

_Wow, so this is where it all went._

All of her feelings of anger and resentment due to her abandonment, went into Marie. I knew that her quick forgiveness was too good to be true.

_Damn it, this is going to get complicated…_

My tortured thoughts were interrupted by Marie, continuing on. "Her self-worth? It doesn't exist anymore, in case you haven't noticed. All day and all night I am plagued with her thoughts of motherfucking worthlessness and depressed ramblings, and horrible, painful longing feelings for _you_. And it's all your fault! How could you do that to her?"

"I-"

"And don't you dare say it was for her own fucking good," she growled, "'cause everyone can see how she fucking turned out, right? So don't play coy with me, Edward Cullen. I showed up to be what I need to be. I protect her. I take care of her. I am damn good at my job."

"When dad was laying into her ass over that goddamn ticket, where the fuck were you?" she screamed at me.

She didn't give me time to answer her, though. I was starting to think all of these questions were rhetorical.

"That's right. You weren't there. I was. I stepped in and handled his ass and made sure he didn't leave unscathed after he had the audacity to fucking slap her. I broke that motherfucker's nose," she informed everyone.

She closed her eyes then and took a deep breath through her nose and let it out slowly through her mouth.

_Ah, smart girl._

She was trying to calm herself down.

When she opened them back up, she kept talking. "In fact, that brings me back to why I'm here right now. I believe you were in the process of calling my Bell a motherfucking liar," she accused, glaring at me.

Regret showed plainly on my features as I whispered, "I was…"

"Well, maybe you shouldn't accuse people of things they didn't fucking do, ever think about that? My Bell wasn't smoking the pot, I was," she revealed casually. "She doesn't know about my stash or my tin box, which, I want back ASAP, buddy. That shit is _mine_, Bell isn't even allowed to touch it."

I looked at her evenly, "No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes, goddamnit," she insisted, exasperated.

"No," I persisted.

"I fucking said yes!" she exclaimed, anger plain on her features.

_She is testing you....don't back down and stay firm._

I cocked my head to the side, and let my eyes squint into a glare as spoke to her in a low voice. "And I fucking said no."

"Alright…" Carlisle interrupted us.

She kept our gaze for three more seconds before breaking it and turning her attention to Carlisle.

_Edward: 1, Marie: 0_

"I know from my education, Marie, that major traumatic events cause the human mind to split to deal with the emotions that those events cause, resulting in the alternate personality."

Marie rolled her eyes, "I know this, doc, I read about the basics with Bell," she said in a bored tone. "In fact, we still have the classic argument."

He lifted his eyebrows, silently asking her to continue. She did.

"You know, the one about whose body this _really _belongs to," gesturing to the front of Bella's body. "Is it mine? Is it hers? Hmmm, I think today it's been mine," she said with a smirk.

"Good times," she said lightly, nodding her head.

He eyed her carefully. "So our leaving…what that did to her, this is the result of it?"

"Nope," popping the P at the end and giving her head a little shake.

He gave her a puzzled look. "Marie, please help us to understand," he pleaded.

She returned his look with one of skepticism. "Right, because watching your best friend change into a motherfucking _werewolf_ right before your eyes isn't disturbing," she said, shaking her head a bit. "Oh, and rogue vampires hunting you down like a goddamn dog isn't traumatic _at all_," her tone dripping with sarcasm.

Carlisle just nodded and said, "I see…"

"Do you?" she asked with her eyebrows raised. "Do you _really_?"

Nobody answered her and I wanted to speak now. "Marie…?"

She turned her gaze towards me. "Edward…?" she mimicked with a smirk.

"I need you to understand that I did what I did because I really thought that it was in Bella's best interest at the time. I do realize now what a mistake it was -"

She interrupted me, "Stupid mistake."

"Stupid mistake," I agreed. "An-"

"A very stupid mistake that you will never fucking make again," she insisted. "And I've already heard your apology to Bell. I was there, you know."

I nodded slowly.

What a weird concept...she was _there_.

"Right. And no, it will never happen again," I agreed, then continued on, "and I will always be here from now on. For her. For you. This doesn't change anything, you and her both have to understand that," I stressed. "Alright?"

"Yeah, okay," she nodded.

I looked at her quizzically. I thought I was going to have to do more explaining than that.

She seemed to interpret my look and answered it with a sigh, "Look, I'm not the insecure one, alright? You won't be hearing any whining from me," she said with that same devilish smirk.

I smiled at this. "I would love to get to know you as well, Marie. You are apart of my Bella and I love her. All of her. You understand?"

She nodded, "I'm so fucking happy you see things that way Edward," she said and licked her lips. "Bell couldn't keep you all to herself even if she wanted to," she smirked and leaned forward on the table towards me. Her eyes darted down to my lips for a second, before we connected in a kiss.

It started out gentle, but then I felt her hands in my hair and the sharp tug of her fingers and the moan from her mouth let me know that we had to stop. My jeans were getting uncomfortably tight. I broke away from the kiss and Marie started panting for oxygen. She rested her forehead on mine and I ran my fingers through her hair. When she backed away, she had a dazed smile on her face.

"So fucking yummy," she declared with a little giggle.

I smiled at her. Looks like I'm gonna have to teach Marie some boundaries. She has been testing my lust and anger constantly today. She's a fucking fireball.

_I like it._

Jasper cleared his throat then, to remind Marie that there were others in the room. I knew that he could feel her emotions, as well as mine, and I also knew that they were all over the place. She seemed to go from complacent, to angry, to affectionate, to horny, back to anger...it was a never ending cycle.

"It is true, Marie. We will accept you the same as we have accepted Bella. Neither of you need to fear a rejection of any kind," Carlisle assured her.

"Well, that's fuckawesome news, doc," Marie said quickly with a smile. "But like I said, my Bell is the one that's going to need all that reassurance, so try and save it for her, m'kay?"

He nodded and asked, "So how are you doing Marie? What has brought you out and about so much today?"

I could see the doctor in him rise to the surface with this line of questioning, and I'm sure everyone else could too.

"Ahhh, you think you're slick, huh Doctor Dad?" she asked slyly, looking at him through the corner of her eye. "If you really must know, I feel just fine. Angry, but that's a given. I'm always pissed off at some type of fuckery or another. For instance, my man Edward, here," she said, jerking a thumb toward my direction. "He was getting my Bell all upset by calling her a goddamn liar, and I had to come straighten out the motherfucking situation. Understand? I couldn't just let it get out of hand, and you guys were doing a shit job at comforting her, if I do say so myself."

"Mmm-hmm," he nodded. "And do you think you've suceeded? Is there something else you would like to do?"

"You miss my Bell, huh?" she guessed. Before he could answer, she gave a slight nod. "Not to worry, Bell will come back around soon enough...whenever I _let_ her come back," she said nonchalantly. "You see, _I_ am in charge, and whenever I come around, it's usually for a good fucking reason, ya know. Today's mission was really about giving you all the scoop on me. I think it's safe to say: Mission Accomplished," she smiled. "I made a motherfucking marvelous show of coming out, didn't I? Oh, and that 'hiding' comment?" she started giggling. "You guys should have seen your faces. I _really_ freaked you out on that one," she said laughing.

The mood in the room seemed to have lifted with the sound of Bella's laughter. Erm...Marie's laughter.

_Whatever._

"Before I forget, it's been fucking delightful to finally meet you all," she said with a smile that all too soon fell into a haunting frown.

"Even if I do hate you sometimes..." she whispered sadly, while looking at all the vampires before her.

_Well, this is disturbing_ Alice thought at me after a bit of silence.

I gave her a slight nod.

"Bewwa?" Katy called from her spot on Esme's lap.

Marie didn't look towards her though. Her wide-eyed gaze had fixed on the table.

"Bewwa?"

No response.

"Bewwa!" Katy almost screamed.

Bella's eyes started fluttering and she took a deep breath then her eyes flickered over to Katy voice.

"Yeah, munchkin?" Her voice came out in a whisper. She cleared her throat and spoke again, louder this time "What is it Katy?"

"I want Momma..." she started rubbing her eyes. She was getting tired.

Bella sighed and looked around table at all of us. I could see the worry return to her features and I knew my Bella was back. She looked at her watch and said, "Momma won't be here for a little bit longer, ok?" she replied.

Katy immediately starting pouting, "But I want her..." and I could see the beginnings of tears in her eyes.

Bella sighed, closed her eyes and started rubbing her temples. "I know, baby, and I'm sorry. Do you wanna lay down and watch Monsters again? I'm sure Alice's mommy will help you out with that," Bella suggested while looking at Esme.

Esme smiled at Bella and nodded, silently communicating that she would be happy to help Katy out.

"I want you..." Katy said and then yawned at Bella.

"C'mere, gimme kisses, and then go lay down in the other room with Esme."

Katy climb down off of Esme's lap and went over to Bella. Bella scooped her up and they embraced, then Bella gave her a quick peck on the cheek, which Katy returned in the same fashion and then Bella started to put Katy down.

But Katy held on. "No, want you...." Katy whined.

Bella sighed and then spoke in a slightly firm tone. "What did I say? Go with Alice's mommy, she will put on your movie and then you can lay down on the couch."

Katy shook her head while Bella leaned down to place Katy back on the floor. After prying Katy's arms from around her neck, she gave the little girl's bottom a slap. "No arguing," she insisted with a kiss to the top of Katy's head. "Now go, I love you," she said and nodded in the direction of Esme.

Katy sniffled, "Wuv you too..." she replied sadly, then walked out of the room with Esme.

Once they were out of the room, all eyes were on Bella. Again. It was starting to feel a little like deja vu. Except this time, Bella hopped out of her seat and into my lap with a quickness, and latching onto my neck with a fierceness that would have given little Katy a run for her money. Not even a second later I could feel her little body wracking with sobs and her tears wet my skin. She was quiet though. Very quiet. All you could really hear was her hard breathing.

Immediately, on instict, I hugged her tightly to me and started caressing anywhere my hands would reach. I whispered words of love and reassurance in her ear, just comforting her and hoping to stop her crying. It made me want to rip my hair out and scream in frustration that she wouldn't stop crying. I needed her to stop. Needed her to feel better.

"My beautiful girl, I love you," I told her softly. "Sweetheart, it's ok. Really. I know, okay? I know about Marie, everyone does now, and it's okay. Nothing's going to change, I'm not going anywhere and I still love you," I kissed the top of her head.

She finally lifted up her head to gaze into my eyes. What I saw there broke my heart. So much pain, worry, and just fucking _defeat_ haunted those chocolate depths and tears were constantly pouring out of them and streaming down her rosy cheeks.

Bella sniffled and then asked in a weak voice, "You promise?"

I kissed her runny pink, button nose then looked into her beautiful eyes. "I swear it, baby," I vowed.

* * *

A/N:

So how do you think the Cullen's handled it? How are you likin Marie?

Leave me a review! :)


	7. We Need To Talk

BPOV

He said that everything's going to be okay. He said that he still loves me, and that he accepts Marie…that everyone does.

Could it really be that easy? The feelings of relief threatening to wash over me were getting to be too much to hold off. I don't know why I am hesitant to believe in their acceptance, but I am.

Maybe it's because I don't really trust them. And that's depressing...

**I told you everything would be fine, doll. Just fucking dandy, right? Edward is an awesome kisser, by the way…I'm going to have to taste him again and soon.**

I listened to Marie's internal monologue and finally let the relief envelop me. It was easy while in Edwards arms. He was holding me tightly to him while I was sitting on his lap. He had been wiping my tears away, kissing my flushed cheeks...just adoring every part of me, and reassuring me of his love. Of his will to stay.

I was loving every minute of it. I had missed him so much, and it was moments like these, that reminded me of the aching loss I had felt just last week, because I went without his comforting embrace for so long.

**Well, we will never have to go without it again, so cheer up, sexy. Think happy thoughts. Happy, happy, happy…** she sang.

Edward interrupted her lilting voice in my head. "Sweetheart, we should get you and Katy back to your house. Her mother should be there soon, and you and I have a lot to talk about." He sighed, sounding a little defeated. "You know, I wanted you to be in bed by now, but that didn't work out. Maybe we'll go into school late tomorrow so that you can catch up on some rest. What do you think?"

I nodded and started to get up. I was surprised to see that Alice waiting there to wrap me in a hug.

"Bella, everything is gonna be fine, ok hun? I can be friends with Marie, too. Hey, maybe she has all of your repressed girliness and she'll let me dress her up…you think?" Alice smiled wistfully at me.

I heard Marie's dark chuckle **Not a chance, twinkle toes.**

I nodded, "I bet she would _love_ that."

**Lies!** she exclaimed, sounding betrayed.

_Haha!_

I was then being embraced by Carlisle. "Bella, we love you, just remember that, okay? You are apart of this family. I know it hasn't seemed like that, but eventually, in time, you will see that it is the truth and come to trust us again. If you or Marie ever need to talk, you know where to find me," he said, then he sealed his words with a kiss to my forehead.

"Thanks," I murmured shyly.

I had to get out of hear before I started to tear up again.

_Stupid Cullens and their sappy words…_

**You know you love them and all their sappy glory.**

_I do._

I walked into the living room to find Katy playing pattycake with Esme while that Monsters Inc movie played in the backround. Edward went straight for the dvd player to get the movie out while I began gathering up Katy's things and putting them back in her bag.

I held my hand out to her and she immediately came over to me. "You ready to go back to my place? Your mom should be there soon."

"Momma?"

I nodded.

"Yes!" she squeaked, then started running towards the front door.

"Wait up, Katy. You're not allowed out there by yourself."

She paused with her hand on the door knob. "Huwwy up!" she demanded.

I caught up to her with Edward behind me. I playfully swatted her little butt and snickered, "Miss bossy," then picked her up to rest on my hip.

She giggled, "Let's go see Momma," she said excitedly, and with that, we were out the door.

I stood around for a minute, talking with Katy about her pattycake game with Esme while Edward switched out the carseat from Alice's Porsche to his Volvo. Once again, she wanted Edward to buckle her in. Apparently, it's 'better when he does it'.

_Whatever._

We pulled into my empty driveway and I was surprised to see Deb's car pull up right behind us. I was trying to get a sleeping Katy out of her carseat without jostling her around too much, when Deb came up to my side to take the bag off of Edward's hands.

She started thanking me for taking care of Katy for the evening, when Katy began to stir to the sound of her mother's voice. I knew that she missed her mom, so I handed Katy right over to her, and after we said our goodbyes, Edward led me into the house.

We walked into darkness, and Edward flipped on the light switch so that I could see where I was going without tripping on something. He walked behind me up the stairs and told me to go ahead and take my shower.

"I'll be in your room, love," he said, then sat down in the old rocking chair in the corner of my room.

I picked a short pink cotton gown out of my drawer, and strolled off to the bathroom.

The shower felt good, the warm water beating down on my tense muscles and relieving the tension from the past couple of hours. While I was sudsing up, Marie showed me what had happened after dinner. I was horrified that she had screamed at Edward, insulted Rosalie, and had apparently offended Emmett in some way.

_Oh my God, how could you?_

**What?** she asked innocently.

_You were supposed to make them like you! Great, now they probably think I need an exorcism performed on me, after you acting like an evil witch._

**They didn't seem to have a problem with it! And besides, you know me. I don't care about other people's feelings or what they think. You should try it sometime, Miss Priss. It's _very_ refreshing** she sniffed.

_Demon child._

**Uptight pansy.**

_Ugh, I am so mad at you right now!_ I stomped my foot in the tub, rinsing out my hair.

**You know you love me.**

I shut off the shower and got out, toweling off and getting dressed. The gown was very comfortable and felt soft on my skin. I smiled as I ran my fingers down the front of it.

I began to grow nervous with the prospect of going back into my bedroom. Edward said that we needed to talk. What exactly did he want to say? Was he mad that I, inadvertently, yelled at him? Insulted his sister? He had to understand that it wasn't me! Oh god, he's mad. And he's going to start laying into me as soon as I walk through that door.

_Oh shit._

**Will you shut up, you fuckin drama queen! I swear to _God_, listening to you gives me a headache sometimes. He's not going to be mad. Just go out there already. And while you're at it, strut your stuff, sexy. We look good in this gown** she remarked as I stared at my reflection in the mirror.

I nodded to myself and opened the bathroom door. I walked back into my room and saw Edward still in the rocking chair. He saw me and gave me that panty-dropping crooked smirk of his, then held out his arms invitingly to me. I grabbed my brush off the dresser and went over to Edward. He pulled me into his lap, wrapped his arms around me, stuck his nose into my wet hair, and inhaled deeply.

"I missed you," he breathed out.

I smiled. "I was only gone for ten minutes."

"Ten very _long_ minutes," he drawled, then kissed my neck.

My back was laying on his chest as he held me to him. He began kissing my neck slowly from the spot behind my ear, all the way down to my shoulder. I leaned into him, letting my head fall back on his shoulder, to give him more access. When he got to the gown strap on my shoulder, he took it in between his fingers and slowly slipped it down, just barely off my shoulder so that he could kiss the exposed skin there, as well. Then, he kissed back up the same trail, all the way back behind my ear. He made the rounds four times before he spoke again.

"I love you so much, Bella," he whispered into my ear.

I shivered from his cool touch and his icy breath. "I love you too."

He took the brush from my hand and nudged me to lean forward a little bit. "We need to talk, sweetheart," he informed me while running the brush very gently through my long, wet hair.

The bristles on the brush lightly scratched down my back, leaving goose bumps on my skin. It felt amazing.

"About what?" I breathed out.

"A lot of stuff. How about you pick a topic you're comfortable starting out with?" he suggested softly, still brushing my hair…slowly, gently.

"Charlie," I practically whispered.

Everything was so quiet in the house, in my room, and the gentle lull of Edward's soft voice directly in my ear only added to the peaceful atmosphere. I didn't want to ruin it by loud talking.

"Okay, do you have anything you want to say, before I voice my thoughts?"

"You go first," I said, suddenly nervous.

"Well," he hedged, "I agree with your father that the ticket is a very bad thing. You shouldn't have been speeding, Bella," he quietly admonished. "And wearing your seatbelt is always a requirement, you know that. I am disappointed that you made those choices, and also a little angry. Honestly, it makes me want to put you over my knee so that by the time I'm done with you, you will never think about driving unsafely again."

"I'm sorry," I whispered as I felt my eyes widen a bit at his statement.

The sudden image that Edward had just put in my head of him spanking me as if i were a child was…well, pretty damn scary.

"Shhh, I know you are baby. I also have a feeling that Marie is to blame for it and that's why I'm letting it slide."

I nodded in response.

"But," he continued, "I am very angry with Charlie," he said while running a cool fingertip along my bruised cheek. "Leaving bruises on you is inexcusable and abusive. I may have just said that I want to spank you every once in a while, due to random things pertaining to your behavior, but I would never mark you," he whispered to me. "I know how to handle your fragile body. He, obviously, does not, and to be perfectly honest, I don't want to leave you alone with him anymore."

He was silent then, waiting for me to respond while the brush strokes continued.

How was I supposed to respond to that though? Edward wanted to…oh God, punish me? Maybe not now, but sometime in the future. The thought of it had me feeling scared…but, at the same time, safe…in a way. A wierd, unknown way.

If that makes any sense.

**No, it doesn't.**

_I know, I am just a bottle of mixed emotions right now._

I hesitated, then whispered, "Why do feel the need to punish me, though? Doesn't really make sense to me," I said with a shrug. "I mean, I'm your girlfriend…not your child. And you've never brought this up before," I said in quiet curiosity.

"Love, it's been quite plain to me since I've known you that you've never had a stable parental figure in your life." He shrugged lightly, "Absent father, flighty mother…you had to be put in the parental role with them a lot...and believe me, it shows clearly in the behavior that you display now. You were a neglected child, sweetheart. There have been many times in the past when it was clear to me that you needed a firm hand, for lack of a better term. Guidance. Safety. And unconditional love. All the things parents are supposed to provide their children, and you just got jipped out of all that. It isn't fair to you. And I promised you that I would always provide you with everything you want. And need." He sighed and it sent shivers down my spine. "Sometimes an authority figure is what you need," he informed me and then gave the back of my shoulder a kiss. "Do you understand?"

Yes. I actually do.

I nodded and then said softly, "I want to move out, Edward. My dad is never here anymore. I barely ever see him…plus, I am 18 now, so no one can stop me. I figure that if I keep attending high school, then it won't be a problem. Charlie hit me…and, I'm both, hurt and angry at him at the same time. I saw what happened between him and Marie and-"

"Wait, Bella…" he interrupted me and paused his brush strokes for a second. When he started them again, he spoke, "You saw what happened? Marie also made a comment to me, that she had seen when I had apologized to you after we returned from Italy over the weekend. Will you explain to me how that works, love?" he asked with a kiss to my hair. And then he added, "Please? And then we can finish discussing Charlie and you moving out."

I agreed. "Yeah, umm…it's actually kind of complicated," I began to explain in a soft voice. "Marie is always aware. Always. Like, right now she knows what we are talking about and she knows that you are brushing my hair for me after my shower. Sometimes, throughout the day, she even adds in her own commentary in my head. So I can hear her whenever she speaks like that, and also, she has her own unique voice. It doesn't quite sound like mine, but it is similar. That's how I can tell the difference between her talking and my actual thoughts." I bit my lip as I continued. "However, I am not always aware. Only when I am like this, like right now…I am consciously here. Ok, right now, I am very aware of what's happening, and this is all normal. But…when Marie comes out, I don't know what happens to my umm, individual mind…?" I tried to explain. He kissed my other shoulder and I sighed, "Sorry, I'm trying my best to explain."

"It's fine, love, keep going…please. I am very intrigued."

"Ok, well…when I know I'm fixing to have an episode, and Marie is going to come around, my vision goes a little blurry. Sometimes, I can have quickened breaths, sort of like a panic attack, but that's not what it is. And sometimes, my breathing just stays normal. Anyway, when she has completely taken over, all I know is that my vision goes black. Now…when I come back around, and I'm me again, my vision goes from blurry to clear, very fast actually, as everything comes back into focus. Oh yeah, and I never know how much time has passed. That's why I tend to immediately check my watch, which I always have on my wrist now. I guess it's sort of like being asleep...in the fact that it's almost instantaneous to me. I mean, one second, I'm blacking out, then the next my vision is clearing up, and I'm in completely different surroundings. It's very disorienting…and it can be upsetting, depending on the situation. Like, one time? ... I was out for 3 days." I sighed and shook my head a bit. "It really freaked me out," I said quietly.

"I'm sure it did," Edward murmured to me, continuing to brush my hair.

"And what I meant, by saying that I could see what happened tonight after I had dinner, is that Marie can actually show me her memory. And what's really interesting, is that it's not like looking back into my own memory. When she shows me hers, it's more like watching a movie. And she only shows me what she wants me to see, so a lot of these memories could be majorly edited, and I would never know. In a lot of ways, we are like two completely different individuals," I finished with a shake of my head.

He kissed my temple and whispered to me, "Your mind is fascinating," he said as if it was a compliment.

I just stayed quiet. I think my mind is freaky, but whatever…fascinating sounds a hell of a lot better to me.

**Did ya hear that, Bell? He called me _fascinating_…** she said with a wistful sigh.

I giggled a little at that.

Edward noticed. "What is it?" he asked curiously.

"Marie thinks you just called her, specifically, fascinating. Not my mind. But her," I told him with a nod.

He laughed lightly, "She's quite a character. I think she's funny and I love her protective tendencies."

I shrugged, "If you say so…"

"I do," he said then changed the subject. "Anyway, with Charlie…"

"Yes?"

"I think you moving out is a very good idea, actually. It would make things a lot easier for us…we wouldn't have to sneak around at night anymore so that I can be by your side while you sleep. And you would be living with a doctor in the house. You know, with your health slipping, and this new revelation of Marie, you might need him more than you expected."

I nodded. "So, I guess the question now is…when?"

Before he could answer, his cell phone started buzzing. He took it out of his pocket and flipped it open. "Hi Alice," he greeted before I heard a lot of squealing and high-pitched fast talking coming through the receiver. I couldn't make out any of it. "That's fine….yes….leave them….alright….ok, yes, Alice, bye." After he flipped the phone closed and slipped it back in his pocket, he started brushing again then explained the call softly in my ear.

"Alice saw our decision. She is already starting to order a bed for our room, and she is going to hang up the new clothes that you left at the house, in our closet. She's starting to rearrange it right now, actually," he finished with a smile.

The way he said 'our' warmed my heart and made me tingly all over.

**So, we're moving in? Awesome! Just make sure that Rosalie bitch stays away from me. I don't like her and I never will like that fucking cuntbag.**

_You need to learn better people skills._

**Fuck your people skills.**

I sighed and turned my attention back to Edward. "That's great," I said with a smile. "I'm not sure what I want to bring over from my room, though. Probably not much. So when do you want to do this, Edward?" I asked and then shifted to the side in his lap so I could see him. "I have some packing to do," I said with a smile.

He put the brush down, my hair practically dry now, and put his arm around my shoulder, tucking me into his side. "As soon as possible, love," he said, then started slowly rocking us back and forth.

My eyes were starting to droop in the dimly lit room. Today had been stressful and I was beginning to feel the affects of it. I yawned and snuggled further into Edward's chest.

"I'll start packing tomorrow after school, then. We can stop by the store and get some boxes on our way back here," I suggested.

"Sounds like a plan, baby. Try and get some rest..." he whispered in my ear before kissing my earlobe.

I nodded and let my eyes droop further closed, lulled by Edward's breathing and our slow rocking. I still needed to discuss something about Marie with him though, and tried desperately to force my eyes back open.

"Edward?" I breathed out, completely exhausted.

"Hmm?"

"I need to tell you something else..." I mumbled.

He kept rocking, and spoke in a slightly firm tone. "Is this something that can wait until tomorrow? You need to sleep, Bella."

I shook my head and he sighed, "Bella I am going to be angry if this is just another attempt to stay awake, like last night," he warned.

I shook my head again to let him know that it wasn't, then spoke up. "About Marie…you know, she's not all she makes herself out to be. Remember that, Edward," I stressed in a whispered voice. "I know she can be hard to deal with. She has a really tough exterior, ya know? What, with the violence, and profanity, and…just overall, in your face attitude. But you have to understand…that it's all just a front. She has a purpose, I guess. My mind created her when situations arose that I couldn't deal with in my weak mind-state. She protects me in a way, but she is ignorant. She doesn't have any social skills, she's doesn't think before she acts. It's almost as though she works on instinct alone, without the common sense that you and I have. And behind all the tough words, and violent actions, she is the same as I was back in November. She was created from a scared, and utterly broken girl. And that is exactly what she really is. And she's very confused. So…just remember that when you're dealing with her and she's being a difficult bitch."

He was silent, so I spoke up again after a minute. ""Alright?" I yawned.

I felt a cool kiss on my hair and heard his soft voice, agreeing, "Okay, love…"

And then I was rocked into the bliss of unconsciousness.

* * *

A/N:

So will Edward do it? Decisions, decisions...


	8. I Want To Go To School

EPOV

Bella had just fallen asleep in my lap, and I continued my slow, rocking pace with ease. I would do this all night, if it would keep her asleep. I planned on letting her sleep-in for two hours in the morning, so she wouldn't be so tired tomorrow. I looked down at her angelic face and couldn't help but kiss her soft, bruised skin again. Finally, she looked peaceful. After an entire day of turmoil and stress, she was resting. Fucking finally. I started thinking about the discussion we had, after her shower.

I had just told my Bella that I want to spank her. What the fuck was I thinking? Granted, that is the method of discipline I have always seen and agreed with, and I was telling the truth about my need to correct her behavior, but what must have that sounded like to Bella?

_I didn't here her protesting though…_

I could smell her fear when I said it. And a part of me absolutely loved that. Her fear, her adrenaline...so sweet. The monster inside of me was laughing darkly and practically begging her to do something 'naughty' so that I could smell some more of that deliciously enticing adrenaline as anticipation crosses her features while she helplessly wonders what I will do to her.

_Ugh, I am sick. Sick! This is BELLA._

I can't get aroused by her fear and excited by the aspect of demonstrating my control over her.

When those very wrong feelings came over me, I had to reign in my control, and quickly, while she questioned my intentions. She was right to be curious about why I would want to do that to her. And after my explanation of my promise to be everything that she needed, including the occasional authority figure, and the assurance that I would never leave a mark on that creamy white skin, she seemed to understand…as much as she possibly could understand, anyway.

I left out that I also need to protect her from herself. Most of the time, the most dangerous thing to Bella, is Bella herself. She has demonstrated that a lot in the past. And I can't help but toy with the idea in my head, that if…if all it would take is me showing her a little bit of discipline, even if it's just a one-time thing, then all the ridiculous behavior would stop. Motorcycles, cliff diving, smoking, violence, and stupid werewolf friends…all of these things are fucking unacceptable. All of these things need to be dealt with.

Ah, but at the same time, am I kidding myself? The idea of hurting Bella is repulsive to me. And I'm sure that my hand smacking her delicate flesh would hurt her, and I'm almost positive that it would result in some tears…and that's where this gets complicated because I just can't fucking stand the sounds of Bella's crying. I can't deal with it. It puts my mind in hyper anxiety-mode and my number one mission in life is to just fucking _make the noises stop_ so that she can feel better, and I can relax. I have an ingrained need to comfort her.

And with that aspect in mind, I really don't think I could go through with it. Just last night, with the light tap I gave her for trying to avoid sleep, was almost too much for me. She actually seemed okay with it, but I was a mess. The whole time, between the slap and her falling asleep, I was afraid that I had messed things up somehow. But she had been surprisingly receptive to it…and she also did what she was told afterwards.

_Interesting…_

Huh…this is going to be tricky.

Bella's stirring interrupted my reverie. I looked at the clock across the room, to see that it was 3:34 in the morning. Her eyelids fluttered open after a minute and with the way I had her head angled, she opened them up to the sight of my face looking down at her.

I gave her a soft smile and whispered, "Go back to sleep, angel…it's still really early," and then kissed her forehead, making sure to keep up the slow rocking pace in this chair.

I watched as she closed her eyes again and started to snuggle her head further into the crook of my shoulder. I tried to accommodate her slight shift in position and then held her a little tighter against my body. She moaned sleepily and I shushed her.

Six minutes later, she opened her eyes again and started to sit up. I thought she was trying to switch positions, but it turns out, she wasn't, because when her back was straight and she turned her head to look at my eyes with her bleary ones, she didn't make a movement to try and lay back down on me again.

_Maybe she needs to use the bathroom._

"Edward," she croaked, her voice thick with sleep.

I put my hand on the small of her back, still rocking. "Hmm?" I responded, looking at her tired face.

Her eyes starting to glisten a little bit and I heard her sniffle. She looked around her bedroom, lit up only by her small bedside lamp, and then back to my face. I could smell the salt in her tears and it put my mind on alert, completely aware of the fact that my Bella was starting to cry.

She blinked the tears out of her eyes, letting a few fall. I wiped them away for her while she gave a delicate sniffle and asked in a sleepy voice, "Is my dad here?"

I shook my head. She didn't need to worry about him anymore.

She sniffled again and then asked, "Where's Alice?"

I furrowed my brow, a little confused as to why she was getting upset. "She's at home sweetheart, you'll see her at school in the morning." I paused and then continued on, "It's still in the middle of the night, Bella. Why do you want Alice?"

She rubbed her eyes sleepily, sniffled again and answered, "I fucking miss her. Is she going to leave me and Bell like before? Will she still like me even though I don't want her to dress me up in all that frilly shit?" she mumbled, clearly exhausted.

_…What? OH! Marie._

"Marie?"

She sighed and tried to stretch but seemed too tired to move much. "Yeah?"

"Hey," I said softly, seeing her distress at the idea of Alice leaving her, and maybe not liking her anymore. Bella really was right…Marie is just a broken, insecure girl.

I wanted to alleviate her fears. "No, Alice isn't leaving, and yes she likes you. Even if you don't want to play dress-up with her. Ok, love?" I kissed her cheek and then informed her of her body's exhaustion, which she didn't quite seem to understand. She appeared to be getting frustrated with the sleepy movements. "You're really tired, Marie…that's why you can barely move, or keep your eyes open. You wanna snuggle up with me? I'll hold you, and you can go back to sleep," I told her as I pulled her back down, against my body.

She complied and nodded against my chest. "You smell yummy…I want Alice, damn it, " I heard her voice whimper, before she slipped back to sleep.

I stuck my nose in her hair and breathed in, deeply. I enjoyed the burn in my throat, whereas before I would shy away from it. I found that recently, I need the burn, like a drug and I was a hopeless junkie. It's not just about the scent anymore, but the feeling of my throat burning, my muscles tightening, and the venom pooling in my mouth. All of these things meant that my Bella was alive and well. After her suicide scare, I needed that constant reassurance. I was like a dying man in a desert, and the burn in my throat that she always ignited was my salvation. With the burn, my internal wounds I had inflicted on myself after Bella's birthday, started to heal. I would do this every night now…torture my body to calm my fears. It seems almost twisted, but it makes sense to me, and that's all that matters.

I let myself burn for hours, until the morning, and then around 8:00, I started to kiss my Bella awake. After a quick stop at the pharmacy, we had school today, and then afterwards, we would do some packing. She would be moving in with me today. At that thought, I couldn't stop smiling as I pecked little kisses all around her beautiful face.

BPOV

After I was dressed and ready to go to school, I went down stairs. I was headed for the kitchen, but Edward stopped me, telling me not to worry about breakfast, because he was taking me out for some 'good and greasy food' after we stopped at the pharmacy to fill my new script for sleeping meds. I just shook my head, but agreed, knowing that he was trying to get me to gain some weight. I really was a little too thin and I knew that fruit or dry toast in the mornings, wouldn't be helpful to my new goal of weighing 110lbs.

I waited in the Volvo while he went into the store to drop off my prescription at the one-hour pharmacy. I was fiddling with his Ipod dock when I heard that familiar voice in my head.

**Where's Alice, Bell?**

_She's probably at school._ I looked at the clock. _Should be in art class right now._

**Well then, can we go to school?**

_Umm, yeah, after breakfast._

**Fuck breakfast. Let's get on with the going to school.**

_Breakfast won't take that long . Besides, I'm enjoying being out with Edward. Even if it is just to drop off my script and grab a bite to eat._

**When he gets back in the car, tell him that you just want to go to the motherfucking school. Say that your stomach is upset, or some shit.**

_No, I'm hungry._

**Goddamnit Bell, just fucking do it!** she demanded.

_Why?_

**I want to make sure Alice is really there. That they didn't lie. They _are_ liars, you know.**

_Well, I know she's at school already, and I'm not worried about it. But I'll hurry through breakfast and then we can go to school, alright?_

She didn't respond. And when I saw Edward walking out of the store, back towards the car, my vision started to blur. Damn it.

_Marie, no._

**Fuck off and don't tell me what to do.**

EPOV

I was standing in line at the pharmacy, intent on dropping her prescription off so it could be filled and ready after we got out of school. While I was waiting I kept looking back out the store window towards my car. I could see Bella clearly from here, with my vampire vision, and I could see a look of concentration on her face. Like she was trying really hard to figure out a difficult puzzle. I saw her eyes glance over my dash board and then fix straight back ahead, with the same look on her face.

_What is she doing?_

"Next, please," the teller behind the counter called to me, drawing my attention.

After I finished up at the counter, I headed back out to my car. I got in the driver side and was turning the heat up a little for my Bella, when she spoke up.

"I want to go to school," she informed me.

I quirked a smile, "Do you?" I asked while pressing buttons to fix the temperature in the car.

She nodded in response.

"Well, you're lucky then, 'cause that's where we're headed after I take you to breakfast. When is your project due again? Today or tomorrow?" I asked, remembering her confrontation with Newton yesterday.

She didn't answer, and instead responded with, "I don't want to go to breakfast. I want to go to school. Now, please," she said and then I heard her stomach growl, betraying her words.

I looked at her then, and noticed that she wouldn't make eye contact with me.

_Why is she trying to starve herself?_

She needs to eat. And she is definitely hungry.

_Why is she lying?_

After I took a calming breath, I asked, "Why don't you want to go to breakfast?" I asked, my patience wearing thin through my voice.

"I…" she hesitated, "I…have a stomach ache," she answered with a nod.

"Why are you lying to me?" I asked bluntly.

She turned to face me then. "I'm not fucking lying, Edward, I just don't want to motherfucking eat, alright? What I do want, is to go to the goddamn school. Now," she demanded.

I sighed.

_Marie. What to do with you…you rebellious little girl. Hmmm…_

Then she swallowed before adding, "Please," ever-so-lightly, as if it hurt her to speak with some damn manners.

"Ah, Marie, dear…aren't you fucking delightful this morning," I remarked with a smile.

She smirked. "Edward, I just want to go to fucking school, alright? Can we do that?"

"No," I replied with a shake of my head, then backed out of my parking space and headed off towards the diner here in town.

"And why the fuck not?"

I shrugged, "Umm…because I said so? Yes. Because I said so. I think I like that answer," I said casually.

"You're a dick. I want to go to school, _now_. I don't want to eat breakfast, so I'm not going to eat breakfast," she said while crossing her arms over her chest. Her stomach growled again.

I sighed. Time to exercise some of that authority.

"Oh, yes, you _will_ eat. You will sit your ass down in that seat and stay put until your plate is clean, do you hear me?" I said firmly.

Alright, you may be playing her at this game of her's, but you are in control, damn it. Don't let this get out of hand. Just make sure she eats. Without any casualties.

"Fuck off, you can't _make_ me do anything," she said with a glare.

_Jesus Christ, she can be a brat_ I thought while pulling into the parking lot of the diner.

I unbuckled my seatbelt, and then undid hers. "If you don't want me to drag you in there, kicking and screaming, you had better start cooperating right now," I warned her with a glare of my own.

I took my keys out of the ignition, and got out of the car without looking back at her, then started strolling over to the passenger side door. I was both relieved, and a little surprised to see her getting out of the car on her own when I arrived next to her door.

_Hmm, being a 'dick' must be working, then._

As soon as the passenger door, closed and I clicked on the car's alarm with my key ring, I heard Marie pout, "I don't want to eat breakfast, I wanna go to school!" she punctuated her rant with a stomp of her foot.

I grabbed her upper arm and quickly pulled her up against my side so I could whisper to her ear without making a scene in front of the other customers. We were still in the parking lot, but people could see us out of the windows.

"Stop it, right now," I growled lowly in her ear.

She yanked her arm out of my grip and then with a huff, she stomped all the way inside the restaurant, with me right behind her. I shook my head at her retreating form.

_Why was she so transfixed on avoiding breakfast to go to school?_

The waitress walked us to a booth and Marie plopped down in the seat opposite of me, so we were left staring at each other. I nudged the menu in her direction, and she nudged it right back at me. Then she lifted her chin defiantly, and turned to stare out the window. I smiled, knowing that I could just order for her. I knew what my Bella liked to eat. I relaxed into my seat, never taking my eyes off of Marie until the waitress came by asking if we were ready to order. I informed her that we were, in fact, ready to order, to which Marie shot me a look that clearly said, 'I hate you'. After I ordered the two pancakes, one scrambled egg, and fresh fruit along with a chocolate milk, the waitress walked off, leaving me and Marie alone again.

Now that we were in the restaurant and I was relaxed, knowing food was on the way, her tantrum was actually becoming amusing to me. She stayed quiet, clearly giving me the silent treatment and kept her eyes fixed on the parking lot outside of the window.

About ten minutes later, Marie's plate was placed down in front of her, along with her glass of chocolate milk.

"Is there anything else I can get you?" the waitress asked Marie.

Marie looked up to the sound of her voice and…actually, _glared_ at her and the waitress's eyes widened.

_Damn it, she needs to learn some fucking manners._

"No thank you, this looks delicious," I said in apology for my rude girlfriend.

The waitress looked at me and after a minute of apparently being star-struck by my evil gold eyes, she nodded her head and flitted off to do something else.

"That was rude," I admonished Marie once we were alone again.

"You're rude. I hope you enjoy your fucking pancakes, 'cause I'm not eating them," she said shoving the plate over in my direction.

I didn't respond, tired of her tantrum again all of a sudden, and just shoved the plate back in her direction.

She shoved it back, daring me with her eyes to do something about it. I ignored the taunt and her immature behavior and just shoved it back to her. She shoved it back, keeping eye contact with me.

I shoved forward.

She shoved back.

I shoved forward.

She shoved back.

_Damn it!_

I shoved it back towards her but kept my hand on the plate this time and held it in place.

She huffed, "Let go of my plate."

"Eat your food."

"_You_ eat the motherfucking food."

"Eat your food, Marie," I said again, keeping my voice calm and even.

"No," she told me, raising her eyebrows in a challenge.

"Eat your food," I repeated one last time.

"I don't want to," she whined and kicked her legs at me a bit.

I raised one eyebrow and gave her a hard look, daring her to kick my leg again.

She didn't, but she _did_ continue to whine. "I wanna go to school," she said with a scowl on her face, and crossed her arms.

My voice was stern now, realizing that I obviously had to step this up a notch. Playing it cool stopped working like, five minutes ago. "We will go to school when you're done eating and not a second earlier."

She looked down at the food as her stomach growled, yet again, but she shook her head, silently telling me 'no'. Again.

"Eat your food, I'm not going to repeat myself again. If you want to continue to throw a fit, then I'll put all of this in a to-go box and take your little ass back out to the car to deal with you," I threatened.

If what Bella said was true, then I knew that Marie had heard the conversation that I had with Bella last night and she would know what I meant by 'dealing with her'.

Obviously the threat worked, because she reluctantly picked up her fork and stabbed some of the eggs, bringing them to her mouth.

_So she does know what I was talking about. Good_.

That could help out a lot when it comes to dealing with her. And my Bella did say she was going to be a handful.

After she swallowed, I smiled at her. "Good girl," I commented.

The rest of breakfast was spent in silence. She ate almost everything except for a few bites of her pancakes.

"I'm full now, I want to fucking go to school already. I want to see Alice," she stated after she gulped down her chocolate milk.

We were waiting for the waitress so I could pay the bill, when I responded. "Is that what your little tantrum was about, Marie? You wanted to go to school to see Alice?"

She nodded, looking me in the eye.

It was the eye contact that did it…I knew that she wasn't ashamed or remorseful. She didn't see anything wrong at all with acting that way to get what she wanted.

_Yes, this will definitely be a problem._

I ignored that for now and let her know, "Well, if you would have cooperated from the beginning, we probably would have already been out of here and at school 30 minutes ago."

This fact seemed to puzzle her as she looked at me in disbelief. "No shit?" she asked after a minute.

"Next time, just do as your told. It'll save you lotts of time," I advised her.

Her shoulders stiffened at my comment. "I'm not a child, Edward."

I scoffed at that and shook my head a little before looking back at her. "Yes…yes, you are."

Her behavior, actions, and the fact of what she actually is, just proves that she was in a child-like mind state.

She didn't respond and I paid the bill. When we were back in the car, driving towards the school it was getting close to 10am.

"When we get to school, it'll be time for our Trig class, so make sure you have that book in your bag, love."

Marie unbuckled her seat belt and twisted around to the back seat to grab her bag. When she brought it up front with her and set it on the floor board, I noticed that she didn't buckle back up before she unzipped her bag and started to dig through it. I didn't comment on it though, because we were basically right outside the school parking lot now, but it was something that I noticed was different from Bella. Bella was actually a little scared of my driving and a stickler for traffic laws. She would have immediately grabbed for the seatbelt again to buckle back up.

After a second, she held the book up to me. "Got it," she said then stuck it back in her bag, and grabbed her pack of gum. After putting a stick of spearmint in her mouth, she smacked the gum loudly and held the pack out for me to see, as well. "Edward, I'm almost out of my fuckawesome minty gum..." she said in a sad voice.

_Aw._

"I'll pick up some more for you after school, sweetheart. We're going to the store anyway to get some boxes."

She nodded at me and then started blowing little bubbles with the gum in her mouth. A song came on the radio as we pulled into a parking space, Nickleback's 'Rockstar', and she turned it up, bobbing her head a little bit to the beat. I was kind of suprised when she started singing along with the song perfectly in tune, word for word. I sat there in silence, enjoying the sound of her voice.

Afterwards, she turned to me with a smile, "I fucking love to sing," she informed me.

And, there's another difference. My Bella would have never done that...she was too shy.

I smiled back at her, "I fucking love hearing you sing," I replied as I turned my car off and put my keys in my pocket.

We exited the car and held hands all the way to our trig class.

BPOV

"Any questions?" my trigonometry teacher's voice echoed in the quiet room. I blinked against the bright flourescent lighting in the room and looked around.

_What the fuck...?_

**We're almost out of gum, but Edward promised us some more after school** I heard Marie's voice say.

_What happened?_ I asked while chewing on a delicious piece of spearmint gum and looking for a clock. 10:26am.

Marie didn't respond though.

I didn't feel hungry, so I knew I had eaten breakfast, which was good because I was starving and I didn't want to upset Edward.

_Edward._

My head whipped around to my left to see him sitting beside me. He smiled at me and I smiled back, relieved at being in his presence. He mouthed 'I love you' and I blew him a kiss.

_We are so corny_ I thought with a smile.

**Yep** her voice piped up.

"...Miss Swan?"

_Damn it._

I slowly looked in the direction of the teacher and hesitantly responded, "Hmm?"

"The answer, please?"

I sighed, trying to stall for time, "Uhhm...the answer? The answer...."

_Quick, what's the answer?_

**How the fuck should I know?**

_God, were you even paying attention?_

**Nope, too fucking busy chewin on my yummy gum and lookin at my man** she responded casually.

"The answer is....the answer is a tough one, you know. Maybe you could repeat the question?" I asked slyly.

Edward snickered and the teacher shot back, "Maybe you could pay attention in my class?" he mimicked my tone back at me.

"Yeah. Yeah, ok, I could do that," I responded casually then he went on with his lesson, never giving me a second glance.

Edward whispered, "Having trouble in math now?"

I shook my head and whispered back, "What happened, Edward?"

"Bella?"

I rolled my eyes and nodded.

"I'll let you know after class," he whispered and then winked at me.

So, after class and all through lunch, Edward explained what had happened this morning and I constantly apologized for Marie's behavior. He shrugged it off, though, assuring me that he could handle her and that it wasn't bad at all. It sounded bad though, but if he's not going to fret over it then I won't either. Alice hugged me and then talked excitedly about my new wardrobe in Edward's closet. Or, should I say, our, closet. She was anxious to get me all moved in tonight.

"Well, we're going to the store to get some boxes, and then I'm gonna pack a few things. It probably won't be more than ten boxes or so, Alice."

She nodded in response.

"So, are you sure this is okay with everyone?" I asked hesitantly, playing with the cap to my juice bottle. I wasn't really sure that Jasper wanted me around in the first place, let alone actually live with him.

"Ofcourse it's okay, Bella. Why wouldn't it be?" Alice asked.

I hesitated again, and looked down. I don't know why, but I didn't want to bring the subject up. And I really didn't want to make it seem like I didn't like Jasper, or that she had to choose between us. I felt Edward's hand on my back and I looked up at him. He must have seen something in my eyes, because he became instantly concerned.

"What is it, love?"

"I..." I sighed, but soldiered on, and i found that it was easier to say this to the tabletop below me, instead of the two vampires sitting beside me. "I don't know what to do about Jasper. Uhmm...I don't want to make him uncomfortable. And I know he doesn't like me, because of that. I make him uncomfortable. Will he hate me more if I move in? I...I just don't want to cause any trouble. I want him to like me, but I don't know what to do that will change his mind. I mean, I like him...when he's not being all creepy. I just...don't know what to do," I shrugged.

Edward's hand stilled on my back and then there was silence.

A very long silence.

I decided to look up after a few minutes and saw that Edward and Alice were doing there silent communicating thing, leaving me momentarily forgotten. I watched them as they continued.

**Talk about creepy.**

_Tell me about it._

"Bella, Jasper doesn't hate you," Alice consoled me while shaking her head sadly. "You must understand, that what happened was because of our insticts, not because of any ill feelings he has for you. Jasper likes you, hun. I thought you knew that?"

"Well, yeah I thought he liked me too...until he tried to eat me," I mumbled, looking down.

"Bella," Edward's voice washed over me. "Love, it will never happen again. No one will hurt you, I swear it," he spoke, his voice strained with the weight of our topic.

I looked up at him incredualously. "I know that, Edward."

His brow furrowed. "Then why do you think it won't be okay for you to move in, baby?"

I frowned. "Because I don't think Jasper likes me," I told him sadly.

Alice wrapped her arm around me comfortingly. "How about you and Jasper have a talk about that tonight? Trust me, Bella. He likes you."

That thought did make me feel a little better. I nodded and smiled, "Sure."

The bell rang then and we got up from our table. We headed off to gym class and I went with Alice into the girl's locker room so we could change into our uniforms. Class was going to be outside today on the blacktop. It wasn't sunny outside, but it wasn't really cold either. After getting dressed, Alice and I walked out the back of the gym doors and met up with Edward. He took my hand and we sat down in our spots, waiting for the rest of the class while Coach Clapp was setting up different balls and jump ropes.

While we were waiting, I remembered all of Marie's confrontations last night. "Alice, what about last night?" I asked, slightly panicky.

Edward watched our exchange while Alice replied calmly, "What about it?"

"Marie was so rude to Emmett and Rosalie. Are they mad? Oh God, what do I do?" my voice rising just above a whisper as panic was winning out.

Edward lightly squeezed my hand, "Shhh, sweetheart," he said, trying to calm me.

"Relax, Bella. I already talked to them. Emmett thinks you're funny and that Marie has got some spunk, and Rosalie actually respects you a little more, because of your ability to stand up to her now. Albeit, inadvertantly...but you still put her in her place."

I nodded and breathed out a sigh of relief, happy to hear that Marie didn't ruin anything last night.

**Ofcourse I didn't fucking ruin anything. You need to have more goddamn faith in me, Bell. I'm a little disappointed in you.**

"She is hurt about what Marie said about not being good with kids though," she continued.

**Well, she's not and I'm not fucking sorry.**

"Sorry," I told Alice and she smiled and nodded.

The rest of the class was outside now and the coach started barking out instructions. We had to do fifty reps with the jump ropes, ten push-ups, and then just stand there when we're done, and wait for the rest of the class, then we were going to do something with the balls he had out. Everyone walked over to the jump ropes and grabbed one. I grabbed a red one and went back over by Edward and Alice, wondering how they were going to do this at a human pace. I guess I wasn't surprised to see them faking it perfectly. I just shook my head at them, suppressing a grin and started my jump rope reps. I was finished pretty quickly and went to put my jump rope away.

I heard Lauren Mallory whispering my name as I walked by her. Then I heard Jessica Stanley's annoying nasal giggling. I knew they were talking about me and that pissed me off. So I slowed down as I walked back over to my spot and casually stepped closer in there direction, then hung my head a bit and tilting towards them so I could hear what they was saying.

"...can't believe he is with her again. She was so pathetic when they left town, I can't believe he finds that weak little bitch attractive," I heard Lauren whisper.

"I know, right? I mean, she's not even pretty," Jessica whispered back.

I had heard enough, so I picked up my pace and went back to my spot, quickly dropping down and doing my assigned push-ups. I heard Alice say something to me, but I wasn't paying her any attention to know what it was.

"1."

**Fucking cunts...**

"2."

_Calm down, Marie._

"3."

**No, I don't want to.**

"4."

_Please?_

"5."

**You need to stick up for yourself more often, Bell.**

I strained and counted out, "6."

**Maybe then I wouldn't have to do it all the fucking time.**

I sighed, "7."

Lauren laughed again and Jessica peered at me from the corner of her eye, only fueling my anger more.

_They aren't worth my fucking time. They are jealous whores, and damn it, don't they have anything better to do, than ridicule and gossip?_

"8."

I heard a low growl beside me and knew that Edward and Alice could hear everything those girls were saying loud and clear.

**Apparently not, but I could give those bitches something to gossip about** Marie chuckled darkly.

"9," I ground out then my vision blurred.

EPOV

I heard what those immature little girls were saying about my Bella, and I was concentrating on trying to reign in my anger while doing these insanely mundane, pointless pushups. Suddenly, I saw Bella rise out of her push-up posture, without completing her reps, and walk casually over to Lauren and Jessica. Alice and I stood up but stayed in our spots, watching and wondering what Bella was doing. Half of the class was standing, and the other half was either still jump-roping, or completing their push ups. Coach Clapp had left to go inside and use the restroom, telling us to finish up and wait for his next instructions.

I heard Alice's sharp intake of breath as she realized Bella's decision, a second before I saw Bella's hand flash out a slap Lauren's face. Hard. The blow actually had the girl taking a few steps back. Lauren screamed and Jessica walked up to Bella, but Bella pushed her down on the ground. She just stood over them...not at all angry, but the picture of calm. She was breathing normal, and her face was relaxed, as she watched the two girls in front of her while a crowd started to gather around them.

"You bitch!" Lauren cried out, holding her cheek.

"Why don't you step back on over here, and I'll show you what this bitch can do," Bella said casually.

Lauren staggered back and swung for Bella, which had me walking towards the girls. I wouldn't let her touch my Bella. But Bella was surprisingly fast. She moved her face to dodge Lauren's cheap shot, then clenched her fist and swung back, hitting Lauren square in the jaw. Lauren knelt down on the ground, holding her face and crying.

"Fucking whore," Bella...or Marie spat at the injured girl on the pavement.

When her gaze turned on Jessica, Jessica started scooting back on the pavement, keeping her fearful eyes on Bella's and then she stood up, headed for the gym doors, intent on telling Coach Clapp what happened.

When I reached Bella, I grabbed her arm and turned her towards me. She immediately stiffened, then relaxed once she realized it was just my cool touch.

She looked up into my concerned face and smiled. "Hey there, sexy," she winked.

"Marie, what were you thinking?" I asked her once I realized she really was fine.

I let go of her arm and looked at her hand, inspecting it for damage. Suprisingly there was none. Marie knew how to throw a punch.

"I was _thinking_ that they should learn to say things to my motherfucking face, instead of behind my back. But I realize now that they can't do that. I broke that one bitch's jaw, and the other scandalous cunt ran off scared." She sighed, "What a goddamn shame..." she said while shaking her head a bit, then she looked back up at me. "I really wanted to know what they had to say about me."

I shook my head at her. "Marie, it doesn't matter what they were saying about you, the violence has got to stop," I told her, hoping she would understand the seriousness of it all. Lauren could press charges if she wanted to.

Coach Clapp came up behind us then, looking angry, with Jessica following behind.

I glared at her.

_Fucking tattle tell bitch._

"Bella!" Coach yelled in her direction. But Marie didn't turn towards him. Probably because 'Bella' wasn't her name.

She was still watching me, trying to contemplate this new 'no violence' concept I was trying to talk to her about. I nodded in his direction to let her know he was approaching her, but I wasn't fast enough, because before she could turn towards him, he grabbed her arm. Roughly.

A low growl rumbled in my chest and I suddenly wanted to break the hand he had ahold of her with, then rip his fucking arm off.

It startled Marie and she jumped a bit. She knew what my growling meant, usually anger or some kind of danger, so with wide eyes, she turned around immediately and kneed Coach Clapp in the groin without hesitation.

He let go of her arm and landed on his knees on the pavement, groaning and holding his privates.

I heard Alice gasp. "Oh, no..."

_Well, this is quickly turning into a disaster._

Marie peered down at his form on the ground and tsk'd. "No," she scolded him while pointing a finger. "You don't fucking touch me."

I wrapped my arm around Marie's waist and pulled her back with me a little bit. I warring with myself to grab her up and make a quick escape, but I knew it wasn't possible.

Everyone just stood there taking in the scene with a stunned sort of silence, the only noises were Lauren's cries from the ground below as she held her face in her hands.


	9. Shut Up!

EPOV

I held Marie to me tightly, feeling my protective instincts taking over as I heard in a student's mind that they were going to go notify the principal of what had just occurred out here on the blacktop.

Alice was stressing out, trying desperately to see the future for Marie so that we knew what kind of disciplinary action the school was going to take. I was still as stone, keeping Marie firmly tucked into my side. Marie was the picture of calm, getting comfortable in our position and asking me if class was almost over, while Lauren Mallory was still screaming her head off on the ground, obviously intending to milk this for all it was worth. I rolled my eyes at her. Her jaw wasn't even broken. Coach Clapp had gotten off the ground and found a seat on the bench, panting a little bit. I guess he was trying to breathe through the pain.

"I can't see what's going to happen, and I won't be able to until the principal comes out here and makes a freakin decision," Alice stressed.

"What do you mean, Ali? What's gonna happen?" Marie asked Alice while twirling a lock of her hair. After a minute, she added, "…and can you make her shut the fuck up?" she looked up at me while pointing to Lauren on the ground. "She's hurting my ears," she explained.

I shook my head, completely baffled that she didn't view anything wrong with the situation. Or that she wasn't considering that she might be in a lot of trouble. It was clear that she didn't think she had done anything wrong and didn't understand why we were freaking out. My main concern was that either Lauren or Coach Clapp would want to press charges. I would bail her out long before they'd be able to lock her up in a holding cell, but that wasn't the point. I really didn't want Bella, or Marie for that matter, to have to deal with that.

"Marie, you shouldn't have hit Lauren, pushed Jessica, or hurt the teacher," I said, trying to explain. "You are in a lot of trouble," I said lowly in her ear, and then looked into her oblivious eyes.

"Why?" she said curiously. Then her eyes widened a bit and asked in a whisper, "Was it wicked of me?"

There's that odd question again. I guess only Marie uses that expression, because I've never heard it from Bella. I just nodded grimly in response and she exhaled sharply, then to my complete surprise, she started trying to get out of my grip.

Realizing she was trying to escape the scene, I held onto her tighter. Running away wouldn't do her any good, or make this problem go away. As much as it bothered me, I was going to have to teach Marie to _not_ run away from her problems. Even if running away was exactly what I wanted to do right now.

After some twisting of her body, she started trying to push against my chest.

I grabbed her chin firmly, making sure I had eye contact with her, then said in a stern voice, "Stop it."

Defeat crossed her features and she stopped, but grabbed a fistful of my shirt and kept a death grip on it. I was glad no one was paying us any attention at the moment. They were either focused on the screaming Lauren, or talking amongst themselves, already plotting gossip and rumors for school in the morning.

The principal walked out the gym doors then and started heading in our direction with a grim look on his face. Marie started freaking out when she saw him.

"Shit, what are they gonna do to me? Why are we still here? And why the fuck are you going to let them hurt me?" she yelled at me, starting up her attempt to get away again.

_Hurt her?_

"NO, Marie, no one is going to hurt you," I said in a raised voice. The thought of the principal, or anyone for that matter, hurting her suddenly enraged me. After I took a few calming breaths, knowing that those things would never happen, I stated in a calmer voice, "Nothing like that is going to happen. He is only going to talk to you, alright? No one is going to touch you," I assured her.

She shook her head and said in a weak voice, "I don't believe you…" then started pushing against my chest, doubling her efforts to get away.

I took both of her wrists gently in one of my hands and started rubbing little circles into her back with my other hand that had her tucked into my side.

"Marie, stop," I said, trying to be firm with her again when she wouldn't stop twisting around.

We were behind the crowd of people and the principal hadn't gotten over to us yet. I wanted her calm before he reached us so that she wouldn't pull another groin kick on the unsuspecting man.

To my disappointment, she shook her head, telling me 'no' again. Sighing regretfully, I stopped my gentle approach of rubbing her back, choosing instead to quickly spank her ass, then punctuating the single slap with a firm squeeze.

I spoke urgently in her ear, "Now, Marie. Stop it _now_."

It had the desired affect. She was breathing hard from all the exertion of trying to escape my grip, but her body was still by the time the principal had reached us and I was back to rubbing those circles in her lower back.

As much as I wanted to apologize to her for the swat, I knew that I shouldn't. It would just confuse her, so I kept my mouth shut while the principal stood before us, taking in the scene around him.

He sighed and faced Marie, asking her calmly, "Do you have anything to say for yourself, Miss Swan?"

She nodded, and he raised his eyebrows expectantly. I inwardly cringed, wondering what she was going to say.

_Please don't let her smart mouth get her into any more trouble…_

She looked him dead in the eye and said seriously, "Just that I can justify the shit out of all of this, if you'll just give me a goddamn minute to explain."

I sighed.

_Never fucking mind._

She continued, "You see the coach man over there?" she asked, pointing to his hunched over form on the bench. The principal nodded, and she did too. "Ok. So, he walks up behind me and grabs my arm. And I'm talkin' about a motherfucking death grip, alright? I'll probably have a bruise," she said showing him her arm for affect. "And you know, you really shouldn't go grabbing on young girls like that, unless you really just want to get bitch slapped. Or kicked in the nuts. Or sprayed in your fucking eyes with some mace," she finished with a nod. Then she added, "That motherfucker is lucky I didn't have my purse out here with me, or I would have busted out my mace can quicker than shit, and started spraying it all over his ugly mug. Know what I mean? So…you know, that was pretty much self-defense," she explained sounding all business-like and professional.

_Yeah, professional bullshitter._

I had a hard time keeping a straight face as she continued on without letting the principal get a word in. I was sort of relieved to find that he was currently having the same problem as me, I could tell by his face, he was fighting a smile and could hear in his thought that he found the situation somewhat amusing. He didn't like Coach Clapp at all personally, but he was trying his best to remain professional, knowing he was going to have to dish out some sort of punishment. So he stood there, and listened to Marie's crafty explanations.

"And as for that scandalous bitch on the ground," she said, pointing over towards Lauren, "it's really her own motherfucking fault. See, talking about people behind their back isn't nice. My mother taught me that shit when I was little. Obviously, her mother doesn't give a damn about her if she's gonna let her run her fucking mouth just so it can get smacked when she does it to the wrong person. So, you see…I was doing the little cunt a favor 'cause her shit for a mother obviously didn't care enough about her to do it her damn self," she said nonchalantly with a shrug. "See, I think what we _really_ have here, is a case of parental neglect..." she trailed off, obviously trying to distract the principal from the matter at hand.

I looked up to the sky and allowed my grin to break free. Marie was really amusing and right now was just not the time to let her know that, because it could encourage this kind of behavior. After I sighed, I straightened out my features again and lowered my head to look back at the man before me, who was currently trying to figure out how to deal with Marie.

"What will your father think of this, Miss Swan?" he asked after a minute of her silence.

_Wrong thing to say, man._

Marie seemed angered by that question. "I don't fucking know and what makes you think I care? He doesn't come around anymore, so I'm pretty sure that he won't give a shit. And why is that any of your motherfucking business?" she said, scowling at him.

He shook his head a little then said, "Come with me, Miss Swan. I need to call your father and then deal with the matter of your punishment."

Marie tightened her grip on my shirt and shook her head.

He nodded at her, "Yes, now come on," he insisted, pointing his hand toward the back gym doors, inviting her to walk in front of him.

Marie stood her ground. And so did the principal. He kept his eyes on her and she started blinking.

_Oh, no…Bella._

After a second, the grip on her shirt loosened and she cleared her throat, looking at the principal standing in front of her with his hand out, then looked up at me questioningly.

I didn't know what to say to her in front of the principal, so I just nodded my head in his direction, silently telling her to go with him.

She hesitantly stepped out of my hold and walked towards the principal and he watched her slowly walk in front of him and he quickly followed behind her.

"My office, Miss Swan," he said, reminding her of where they were going.

She kept walking and before they got to the gym doors, she looked back at me with a worried look on her face. I stood there, trying to look reassuring in my gaze, but really feeling helpless and was clueless as to what to do right now.

Alice and I followed them shortly after and we sat in the lobby area outside of the principal's office to wait for Bella. I was completely aware of what was happening and being said in the room across the hall. I could see Bella's hesitant, unsure facial expressions through the principal's mind. Her apologies and the principal's phone call to the police station to contact Charlie had gotten her eyes to start tearing up. I could smell the salt in them from here, and it was stressing me the fuck out. My Bella shouldn't be crying. I ran my hand roughly through my hair, thoroughly frustrated and completely unsure of how to handle this situation.

No matter how you look at it, it's really fucked up.

The whole incident wasn't Bella's fault. It was Marie's. But…it looks like from what had just happened, along with the recent smoking and traffic ticket incidents, that Marie lets Bella take the fall for her a lot.

The realization only made me angry at her. But then that brought up a new thought in my head. I'm angry with Marie right now, but does that mean that I'm also mad at Bella? As for this particular situation, as well as those that will happen in the future, I need to keep in mind that Marie is an extension of Bella, somewhat, and that punishing Marie is essentially punishing Bella. That concept seems extremely unfair to them, but what can anyone do about it? I mean, they share the same body and mind.

But after knowing both of them, I know that they are completely different from each other. Different mannerisms, views and morals, hell…even different voices. While Bella's voice is mellow and relaxed, Marie's tone is more sharp and I noticed that the octave of it is a bit lower. They have their own separate personalities, and it really is like they are two different people.

_I am so confused._

I was interrupted from my thoughts by Alice taking my hand, right before Charlie walked in the door. I was angry at him for neglecting Bella while I was gone and for hitting her hard enough to leave a slight bruise on her beautiful face yesterday.

Before I could speak up to confront him though, he turned towards the seats that Alice and I were seated in, and a look of surprise came over his features. He hadn't expected to see me hear. His thoughts were clouded but I could see that he had an intention to talk to me about something important.

"Edward," he said, nodding curtly to me in greeting and sat down two chairs from me and my sister.

Alice squeezed my hand.

_Let him talk first. Don't say anything_ she thought at me.

Charlie turned to face me then. "Edward, I need to speak with you before I go check in with the receptionist. Your father came to speak with me this morning. I am going to tell you right now that I am not sorry for slapping my daughter across her face yesterday. I am her father, and will punish her smart mouth as I see fit," he told me.

"You left a bruise on her cheek, asshole, so that constitutes as abuse," I said, interrupting him. "I'm surprised that she didn't file a police report against her father, the police chief. How do you think that would look on your record, hmm?"

"I'm not going to defend my actions to you, Edward. I actually need to discuss another matter with you."

"Well, then fucking get on with it," I said, not caring in the least if I sounded rude to him.

I didn't respect this man at all anymore. Actually, I wanted to leave bruises on him in the worst ways possible. Right now, as a matter of fact.

"Your dad came to me personally, and explained a lot to me about my daughter's current mental state. Things that I had no idea were going on. I have heard of split personality disorder, but I don't really know anything about it. And after our discussion, the events of yesterday afternoon make more sense to me. Bella turned violent on me, out of nowhere, and she said something very peculiar. She said 'Don't ever touch us again'. I didn't dwell much on that statement, but now a lot of the puzzle pieces are starting to fit together after 6 long months of her erratic behavior. He also informed me that since I don't really have the financial facilities to get her any kind of help, and she is now 18, that she has decided to move out of my house and move in over there with your family, after a discussion that took place at your house last night. He told me that he would be her attending physician, free of charge, stating that she is like a daughter to him, and…" he paused.

I nodded, silently telling him to continue.

"…and, I need to know if you know when all of this moving is going to take place," he finished.

"Tonight," I informed him.

He nodded at me, but I saw in his thoughts that he was relieved. The fact that Bella was moving in so quickly allowed him to move his girlfriend, Sue, into the house sooner than expected without dealing with Bella's apparent objections.

I was disgusted with him and his selfish thoughts. He had changed a lot since Bella's birthday back in September.

"So, do you know if it was Bella that assaulted the teacher, or if it was this….uhmm, 'alternate personality'?" he asked, unsure of himself.

I wouldn't even look at him. "Alternate," was my curt response.

If he didn't care enough about his daughter to stick around and be a father to her in her times of need while I was gone, then I wouldn't tell him this 'alternate personality's' name, or explain to him any further on the subject matter. It was clear that he was comfortable with as little information as possible. He wasn't interested in Bella's mental state at all.

With that, Charlie went into the office to accompany Bella and the principal, and I sat back in my chair, waiting for my angel to be back in my arms again.

BPOV

I was in a daze. My eyes were clouded with tears that continued their decent down my face as I stared out the window of the Volvo while Edward drove down the road back towards the pharmacy we were at this morning. Before Marie took over and threw a fit, giving Edward trouble at handling her over something as simple as eating breakfast.

**I didn't throw a fit, I just wanted to go to school and you wouldn't fucking listen to me.**

_Shut up._

And then at gym, when I asked her just to please calm down…that Lauren and Jess weren't worth getting in trouble over, she wouldn't fucking listen to me. Instead, she took over, assaulted two students and a teacher, and then…oh God, the principal -

**Was a self-righteous prick that you shouldn't have had to deal with. I turned on my fucking charm and tried to get us out of trouble! But it didn't work…**

_Please shut up._

And then I'm sitting in his office, helplessly awaiting my doom, when my father walks in. My father, who hit me yesterday, walks in and starts explaining that I have a 'mental illness' and how I shouldn't be blamed for things that I had no idea I was doing.

_How the hell did he find out? And I don't have a fucking illness…do I?_

**No, and I bet it was those Cull-**

_I wasn't fucking asking you, and I told you to SHUT UP!_

So then after an eternity of being stared at like I'm some damn science experiment because I know that I am now considered crazy by both my father, and the Forks High School population, I am finally told my punishment. I am expelled. Fucking expelled. I can't come back on school grounds and both Coach Clapp and Lauren Mallory will be filing restraining orders this afternoon.

I just…how did this happen? And my father is fine with me moving out? More than fine, actually…it sounded like he was pushing for it. Does he want to get rid of me? Smack me around then throw me away because I'm crazy now?

More tears fell at that though and I sniffled. Everything was _fine_ and would have continued to be fucking _fine,_ if Marie didn't interfere. I know this because I sure as hell didn't have any intention of walking across the blacktop to smack Lauren across her face. After that happened, from what I understand, everything just went down hill from there. And then my God, the coach -

**Like I said, if you would just stick up for yourself more often, then ma-**

"Shut the fuck up!" I screamed into the quiet atmosphere of the Volvo while pressing my hands over my ears, causing Edward to jump a little and pull over to the side of the road.

"Expelled, Marie? I hate you!" I yelled, tears streaming down my face. "Just shut up…shut up, shut up, fucking shut the hell up!" I cried desperately.

I just didn't want to hear her voice right now and she wouldn't do me the common courtesy of staying quiet inside of my head. She was giving _my_ head a fucking headache.

"Bella!" Edward called out to me, clearly alarmed by my outburst.

He pried my hands off of my ears and then quickly unbuckled my seat belt, pulling me over onto his lap.

"It's going to be okay, sweetheart," he said with a worried tone, and then he placed a cool kiss to my temple.

**Awesome job at making Edward think you're _not_ crazy** her voice said sarcastically.

I pressed my hands back over my ears, buried my face in Edwards chest and screamed. The thought of Edward thinking that I'm crazy, along with everyone else, was just too much to bear at the moment. He just squeezed me tighter to him, clearly at a loss for words. After about five minutes of screaming and sobbing, I eventually relaxed and quieted down.

My throat felt raw as I asked him weakly, "Please make her shut up. Please, Edward….make her stop. My head hurts," I pleaded with him.

He looked extremely concerned, but didn't respond to my pleading. He just wiped my tears off my face and pressed his lips to overheated skin on my forehead. "I'm sorry…" he breathed out. "I don't know how, baby," he said hesitantly, as if this fact was very hard for him to admit. "I don't know how," he repeated in a whisper and started rocking us a little, never loosening his hold on me.

I felt better at the fact that he was still willing to comfort me right now, instead of displaying the behavior that I had become familiar with this afternoon from other people. The people that think I'm crazy. He wasn't looking at me weird at all. All I could see in his eyes was concern and love. It was all I needed to calm down completely and crawl back over to my own seat so that we could finish our drive to the pharmacy.

We still had to pick up my meds and then go to the store for boxes and my gum.


	10. A Trip To The Store

BPOV

Edward had tried to console me on the fact that I was expelled. He informed me that I had other options of finishing my high school credits, like night and summer school. He said it wouldn't take much since there was only three months left in my high school career. The fact that not all hope was lost when it came to my high school diploma, brightened my mood a bit.

We were back on the road, on our way to the pharmacy, when Edward broke the silence with his velvety voice. "Love, I'm sorry I can't help you make Marie's voice stay quiet inside your head," he said while taking my hand in his own. "Is it actually causing you pain?" he asked with concern. "What types of things was she saying that made you scream at her like that?"

I rolled my eyes. "Don't feel bad, Edward. I know you can't make her voice stop, and that it's all in my head." I sighed, "God, I really do sound like a crazy person," I said with defeat.

"Hey," Edward said, feigning hurt. "I hear voices too," he said, a smile playing on his lips.

I smiled back. "Yeah, but your ability is so much cooler than mine," I said, playing along. "You can hear people's thoughts, and that's awesome. I just create imaginary people that live in my head to deal with all the stuff that I can't seem to handle," I said jokingly, but we both knew that I was dead serious.

He kissed my palm and repeated what he told me last night. "Your mind is fascinating," he said with a wink.

After a few seconds, he repeated his question. "Does it hurt much, baby? You know…when she's speaking and won't stay quiet?"

"Yeah, sometimes…it can give me an actual headache. Right now, it's just a dull ache. Nothing too bad," I said nonchalantly with a shrug.

He nodded and voiced the last of his questions. "What was she saying?" he asked hesitantly.

"She was basically just defending her actions. I understand her actions, but that doesn't mean that I agree with them. Or that I am, by any means, happy with the results of most of her decisions. She's an angry, violent girl…it gets me into a lot of trouble," I said, remembering some times over the past few months that had been particularly hard for me because of Marie.

"She has a need deep within the core of her being to protect. After all, that is like…the purpose of her existence, ya know?" I looked at Edward and realized that I was not sorry at all for being about to bring this up. "That was your job, but when you guys skipped town, my protector was suddenly gone." I watched as pain etched on his features, but I continued on. "But just because my protector had left, didn't mean I was out of danger. By _any_ means. Okay…Victoria and werewolves aside, there was still the everyday, human dangers that people encounter. Rapists, drug dealers, thieves…and just the common mean person. Scandalous people who want to take advantage of your trust and kindness…" I sighed, not finishing my thought. I wasn't ready to tell Edward about my life while he was gone.

He stayed quiet, listening to me with a guilty look on his face.

I changed the subject back to Marie. "Marie doesn't see reason…like I explained last night, she seems to lack that common sense. Well, this whole fiasco just proves it. In her mind, there was nothing wrong with smacking Lauren for insulting me. And then when Lauren tried to retaliate, she struck back at her with more force. It all falls back on her instinct to act without thinking. Her main thought is continually to protect, and do it well…no matter who ends up getting hurt. For example, if Lauren had actually made contact with her intended hit, then Marie would have reacted with a lot more than just that single punch to her jaw. The punch was more like a warning for Lauren to just _stay down_. And then when the coach grabbed her arm, the same instincts kicked in. She doesn't like anyone handling our body roughly…especially a man," I finished quietly.

Edward took a minute to let all this information sink in. He pulled into a parking space at the pharmacy then he turned his body toward mine.

"Has she had to protect you before…from a man handling you roughly?" he asked with apprehension.

I looked up at him from the passenger seat. I found his gold eyes intently fixed on mine. I tried to pour all the pain and embarrassment I had with those particularly harsh memories into my gaze, then smiled sadly after a minute.

"I think you know the answer to that, Edward," I said sadly.

He hissed then a growl ripped from his chest. I ran my fingers through my hair, getting frustrated and sighed. I tore my gaze from his growly dramatics and looked out the window.

After a minute he asked, "What happened?"

I shook my head, not wanting to talk about it. This day was bad enough. I needed some cheering up…not to talk about these things.

I shrugged, still not looking at him. "Edward, I don't want to talk about it."

"Bella-"

"Edward," I said pointedly. and turned to face him. "Could you please just go get my medicine, so we can go to store? I really want to get started on packing and get out of my father's house so that he can move his whore in as soon as possible," I said flippantly, completely dismissing the subject.

He looked defeated, then quickly brought his lips to mine. The kiss felt almost desperate on his end and after he broke away, he whispered, "I love you," and it sounded almost apologetic.

"Yeah, I love you too," I said, then turned away from him, looking out the window again.

I was starting to get upset with Edward. This whole situation and reason for it, along with a lot of stuff that had happened to me since my birthday, pointed back to the event of him and his family leaving. If he hadn't left me…he would have been there to protect me from a lot of things, and my mind wouldn't have found a need to create Marie, and I wouldn't have gotten into a bunch of trouble because of her behavior over the months, and today wouldn't have been a bad day, and I wouldn't be fucking expelled from school right now.

_Goddamn it! I hate you right now, Marie._

**Well, I fucking love you Bell. You'll calm down eventually, and I'll still be here, darling.**

_Shut up. Ugh, I need to calm down…Edward is here **now**. Focus on that._

Edward exited the Volvo then, and while he was in the building, I took calming breaths and relaxed, focusing on how happy Edward usually makes me and the fact that he was being very accepting of the complete mess that I am now.

When Edward got back in the Volvo, I took the medicine from him with a small smile and occupied myself by reading the pamphlet they stuck in the bag while he drove to the store.

Edward seemed tense beside me while he drove and I saw that his hands were gripping the steering wheel very tightly. I sighed, wanting to stay calm. I knew what he was thinking. He was wondering what had happened when I had been 'handled roughly' and the possibilities running through his mind right now must have been horrific and endless.

When he pulled into the parking space at the store, I went to unbuckle my seat belt, but what he said when he turned the car off, made me freeze in my spot.

EPOV

I couldn't handle knowing that someone had hurt her. That her time here in Forks without me had been full of pain and danger…but apparently, it was. This was just more evidence that all my hopes of her being safe and eventually happy without my vampire coven around, had gone to shit. The thoughts running through my head of all the things that could have happened to her were driving me insane. I couldn't take not knowing for sure what had happened.

"Bella, were you raped?" I blurted out before I could stop myself. I stopped breathing and tensed even more, waiting for her reply.

I saw her body stiffen, her hand on the seat buckle, as she turned her gaze slowly to me. She spoke carefully and very quietly. Like she was telling me a secret. Instead of answering me directly, she replied with, "I'm still a virgin, Edward."

I was confused now. "What…what happened, Bella?"

She was quiet for a minute, clearly trying to decide whether or not to tell me. I hoped she trusted me enough to confide in me. She used to tell me _everything_.

Finally, she quietly spoke again, keeping our eye contact. "It never got that far, Edward. That's where Marie comes in…" she said pointedly, as if she was trying to tell me something without actually saying it.

"So…she protected you?" I guessed.

She nodded grimly.

"How, Bella? What did Marie do that you couldn't do yourself?" I wondered aloud.

Without skipping a beat she replied, quick and quiet, "He's dead," staring at me intently.

I couldn't stop my mouth from dropping open in shock.

Seeing my reaction, she tried quickly to explain, her voice no longer a whisper. She shook her head a bit, then said "I couldn't do it, Edward…because I'm too weak. So she did. That man is dead, and I still have my virginity."

My feelings of pride and gratitude for Marie were overwhelming me right now. I was afraid that she took my shocked expression as a bad thing, though. My breath came out in a rush. "H-How?" I breathed out.

She hung her head a bit in shame, and I decided to correct her perception of my reaction. "No, Bella…no, I'm not upset." She looked back up at me then, so I continued. "I'm quite the opposite actually. Tell me how, baby…what did Marie do?" I asked very intrigued now.

"She used his own weapon on him. A knife." She paused and then continued after some thought. "I have the knowledge on how to defend myself, Edward. I actually know how to kill a person in quite a few different ways, from both my education and some street fighting. You know, with my dad being a cop and all, I've taken tons of hands-on classes on the subject…it's just that I lack the guts to actually put any of it into action, I guess. Marie, on the other hand…actually enjoys herself when she lets our violent tendencies come out. That's how she knows how to fight really well, and how to throw a punch properly. We know a lot of stuff…but she's actually the one that puts it to use all the time. Violence and blood make me cringe. On the other hand, with her it seems like it's almost therapeutic. You should probably know that she really enjoys fighting…you know, for future reference."

I nodded, "I'll keep that in mind," then took her precious face in my hands. "I'm so glad that things didn't get that far. That he didn't get a chance to hurt you," I told her before I touched my lips to hers. When we broke away, I murmured against her lips, "I'm very proud of Marie, you know."

She nodded a little, her face still in my hands. "Yeah, I was too."

I smiled.

She pecked my lips quickly then. "Let's go get some boxes. And we can't forget about my gum," she said with a smile, clearly trying to lighten the mood. I could tell that the subject was making her uncomfortable.

"Okay sweetheart," I agreed, then let go of her face and got out of the car.

I came over to her side, opened the door for her, then we linked our hands together, and walked towards the store's entrance.

When we were out of the parking lot and on the sidewalk, I noticed that Bella was twisting the ballcap she had on so that it was on backwards.

I had grabbed my baseball cap out of my trunk and told her to put it on while we were pulled over on the side of the road. When she said that she had a headache, I knew that it would help and keep light out of her eyes, but now it was on her head so that the part that was supposed to provide her eyes with some shade, was on the back of her head now, completely rendering my idea useless.

We were approaching the entrance doors, when my Bella quickly skipped ahead of me with a smile on her face, then turned around to face me while she walked backwards.

"Hey, Edward?" she asked, clearly in a better mood now.

I smiled back, "Yeah, baby?"

"When we pick up the boxes and my fuckawesome minty gum, can we get icecream too?" she asked excitedly.

Ah, my Marie.

I gently grabbed her arm and turned her around, so that she was facing the right direction. I didn't like her walking backwards, it made me nervous. When we were side by side, I wrapped my arm around her waist.

"What flavor would you like, Marie?"

"Um…" she squinted her eyes in thought, "cookies n' cream is like an orgasm in your mouth, so I think I want that one," she said brightly with a smirk.

I smiled at her, always amused by her bizarre metaphors and language.

Then she gasped, "We need a cart!" and ran off to go grab one before I could stop her.

She rushed back over to me, and when the cart was rolling at a fast pace from her running, she hopped up on the back of it, keeping her hands on the handles and rode the cart the rest of the way over to me.

I grabbed the end of the cart when it approached me, to stop it from continuing to move forward and give Marie a ride. She giggled at me with excitement lighting up her chocolate eyes, and hopped down as I came around to the front to grab the handle and push the cart myself.

After we started walking again, Marie stepped up onto the side of cart while it was still moving, and climbed over the side of the basket, getting in and sitting down in the middle. She positioned herself so that her back was up against the end of the cart and she was facing forward, looking at me.

A huge grin spread across her face.

I smiled back at her, realizing that her perky attitude and happiness was undeniably contagious. "What's got you so happy, Marie?"

"I get my gum!" she exclaimed excitedly.

I chuckled at her childish, but cute behavior.

"And icecream!" she added with a smile. "And…"

"And?" I prompted her while turning down an aisle.

"And you said that you were _proud_ of me. I heard you," she smiled smugly.

I nodded. "I _am_ very proud of you when it comes to that particular incident," I confirmed.

She grinned again, then started bouncing a little in place as we approached the icecream.

I watched her fondly. I could see that besides her tantrums, her mood right now also demonstrated her child-like mind state. She was so easily amused. And she seemed extremely satisfied that I said I was proud of her...like she had done some great accomplishment.

She pointed at the icecream behind the freezer door. "That one," she said while pointing at the Edy's brand icecream tubs.

I picked out the cookies n' cream flavor and brought it back to the cart. She reached up for it as I handed it to her. "There you go, sweetheart."

She smiled gratefully. "Thank you." She placed the carton of icecream down in front of her and traced her fingertip across the cold lid.

_Fucking adorable._

I started pushing the cart again, heading over to a section where we could pick up some broken-down boxes from the store's deliveries. Marie was busy watching her surroundings, and absently tracing her fingers around the cold carton placed at her feet. Music was playing on the overhead speaker system of the store and Marie started distractedly singing softly along, not missing a beat and softly in tune. It was a Mariah Carey song called 'Hate You' that had just come on. I walk at a relaxed pace, enjoying her voice. I loved this about Marie. She wasn't shy at all, had almost no inhibitions. I could listen to her beautiful, melodic voice all day long.

After I picked up some boxing tape and some flattened boxes, and placed them in the storage carrying area below the cart, I headed up to the front of the store to check out. I noticed while I was getting the boxes that Marie kept tiredly rubbing her eyes, and when she yawned, I knew it was time to go.

Marie had a strand of her hair in front of her and was braiding it until she noticed where we were headed. "Don't forget my yummy gum, kay Edward?"

"I know," I said assuring her that I hadn't forgotten and turned towards the candy in the checkout aisle.

I grabbed a pack of Orbit spearmint flavored gum and put it on the vendor belt next to the boxing tape. Then I reached for the icecream, so Marie handed it to me and I placed it down by the gum.

"Come on, spider monkey, time to climb out of the cart," I told her.

"But I wanna keep riding in it…" she responded, and I heard a slight whine to her tone. Then I saw how she pouted out her bottom lip, for added affect.

I shook my head, ignoring her antics. "No Marie, we're done shopping. Ride is over, baby," I said firmly, and reached for her.

She stood up and held her arms out to me, so I wrapped my hands around her small waist and lifted her out of the cart, then set her back down on the ground.

After I paid, we walked back out to my car and put the boxes in the trunk along with the shopping bag that Marie had carried out with her. When we got in the car, I made sure Marie was buckled up, then started speeding through the drive out to my house.

We had to put her icecream in the freezer before it melted and I wanted to drop her medicine off too, before we made the drive out to Charlie's house.


	11. Tin Boxes And Packing

EPOV

Marie had fallen asleep while I was driving back to my house. I kept my hand on her leg as she curled up on her side. We hadn't been driving for five minutes before she fell asleep. I guess today's events had worn her out, and Bella had been pretty stressed before Marie took over when we had arrived at the grocery store.

I pulled up into our driveway and decided that since I was only going to run in for a minute to put her icecream away and take her medicine to the kitchen, that I would just leave Marie in the car and let her sleep. I was relieved that she seemed to be catching up on some much needed rest, so I grabbed the prescription medicine bottle out of the center console, then rolled down the windows for her before I shut the car off, and went around to my trunk to get the icecream.

I walked inside the house and Alice met me at the door.

"Is she alright? Bella's bed arrived this morning from the furniture outlet while we were at school. It's already set up for her in your bedroom and I talked to Jasper about Bella's concerns. He said he will talk to her about them tonight. He would do it right now, but she's pretty much knocked out, huh?" she said, referring to the sleeping beauty outside in my car.

"Yes, thank you Alice, she's fine and yes, she's sleeping. Today has been stressful for her, you know," I stated the obvious while walking past her towards the kitchen.

I was putting the icecream in the freezer when Carlisle approached me. "Edward, I treated Lauren Mallory in the ER this afternoon. The gossip around town now seems to be that Bella is quite the 'bad ass'," he said with a smirk.

I chuckled at the expression, but then gained back my composure before I told him, "Yes, that whole scene played out quite nicely. Marie assaulted two students and a teacher. And now Bella is expelled from school." I shook my head, still having a hard time believing it. "But I've already told her about her options for summer and night school, so she doesn't seem to be as upset as she was when she found out about her punishment. At first, it was pretty bad. She was very upset at the idea of not being able to graduate."

He nodded, serious now. "Yes, I heard. We're going to have to keep an eye on her," he said with concern. "Also, I went to the station and talked to Charlie this morning. I explained to him about Bella's mental state and her moving intentions. He seemed quite cooperative with it all, and is entrusting her welfare into me."

"Yeah, more like he can't wait to get rid of the problem that he can't handle," she with exasperation and a roll of my eyes. "He's been neglecting her ever since we left Forks back in September. He's pushing for her move to happen as soon as possible, so that he can move Sue Clearwater into the house without bothering with Bella's opinion about it," I informed him.

He nodded as though he already knew this information. I could tell by his thoughts that he had suspected as much, but didn't know for sure.

"So, how is she now? Besides the incident at school, has Marie made any other appearances since last night?"

After I placed her medicine bottle on the kitchen counter, aware that everyone in the house could hear me, I began my lengthy explanations of early this morning when she had woken up in the middle of the night asking for Alice, and at the diner this morning, throwing a fit and refusing to eat breakfast, then the details of the gym class confrontations, then Bella's meltdown in the car on the way to the pharmacy after school, and, finally, Marie's appearance at the grocery store.

I described her different moods on all of the occasions, and stressed to him what Bella had told me about Marie's instinctive reactions, her violent tendencies and her hands-on education allowing her to express that violence. I explained about how her sole purpose, and reason for existence is to protect Bella at all costs. And when we came upon that subject, I told him about how Marie had actually killed a man while we were gone. A man intending to rape Bella.

By the end of my speech, everyone had gathered around to listen more intently, and Carlisle looked astonished by most of my information. I could tell by his thoughts that were going a million miles a minute, that he was especially excited to start working with Bella and counsel her about this apparent disorder of hers.

"Edward…" came Bella's sleepy voice from outside.

"We'll be back later this evening," I told my family, then rushed back outside before any one could get a word in as response, intent on getting back to Bella.

I wasn't expecting to stay inside for more than a minute, and already fifteen minutes had passed. I didn't know whether to expect Bella or Marie when I got there, so I quickly decided to always assume that she was Bella, unless Marie's unique voice, language or actions proved otherwise.

I could tell them apart now with ease.

I was at the passenger door of my car in a split second to find Bella starting to sit up from her curled up position in the seat. I leaned forward into the window space of the car door and cooed softly to her, "My sleepy girl."

I reached my hand out and ran my fingertips across her beautiful blushing cheek. She gave me a small smile and stretched. The way that her body flexed allowed her shirt to ride up just a little bit, and it exposed a sliver of her creamy belly skin to my eyes. I lowered by already outstretched hand, and lightly tickled my fingertips on that enticing bare skin. Immediately, my ears were assaulted by her peels of giggles. I smiled at the sound and removed my hand.

"Ready to go do some packing?" I asked her.

She looked towards the house behind me, then back up to my face, and nodded.

"Okay, beautiful," I responded, and went around to my side of the car.

I slipped inside and took Bella's hand in mine. I started the Volvo and sped down the driveway, headed over to Charlie's house.

BPOV

I was quiet, absently playing with Edward's cold fingers during the drive over to my dad's house. I had woken up alone in Edward's car earlier, wondering what had happened and how long I'd been out. But after looking at the dash clock, I saw that I was only gone for just over an hour since it was now 5:30 in the afternoon. I watched Marie's memory play out at the grocery store with a smile playing on my lips.

She was certainly in a good mood…

**Edward is proud of me!**

_Yes, well…that's because you didn't let that man hurt us. I'm proud of you too._

**It's 'cause I'm fucking awesome.**

_Yeah, okay. I'm still mad at you._

**Well goddamn it, hurry up and get the fuck over it already. Not going to school for a couple of months isn't exactly something to cry about, drama queen.**

"We're here, love," Edward informed me when we were sitting in the driveway and I hadn't made a move to unbuckle my seatbelt.

I shook my head a little, coming back to the present reality. "Oh, right," I said, then quickly unbuckled my seatbelt and got out of the car.

Edward followed around to the trunk of the car. He popped it open and handed me the small bag that had what looked to be some boxing tape in it, then he grabbed the stack of flattened boxes and closed the trunk. We turned to go towards the house and I started fishing for my keys in my purse. Once I had them out, I unlocked the door and we walked into the house, getting out of the light drizzling rain.

We went straight up to my bedroom and Edward made quick work of putting all the boxes together. We had twelve boxes to work with. I nodded, thinking that it would be more than enough.

I went to my dresser with a box while Edward went to my closet with a box of his own. About ten minutes later, all of my clothes were packed with the boxes taped up. I put the dirty clothes that were in my hamper in a black trash bag. I would wash those at Edward's house tonight.

"Edward, will you take a box down to the living room and pack the dvds that are mine and my Nintendo DS stuff, please? I'm going to pack up my bathroom stuff, and then I'll be down there with a box to get the food out of the cabinets that are for me. Stuff like my pop tarts, and little Sunny D bottles. Charlie doesn't like those."

"Yeah, baby."

He grabbed a box off the floor and came over to give me a kiss before jogging off downstairs.

I grabbed a box and went to the bathroom. I packed up my shampoo, conditioner, body wash with scrubby, face wash, bubble bath, feminine products, my purple sparkly toothbrush and my Crest toothpaste, my deodorant, my hair brush along with a few hair accessories, and some q-tips. Then I raided the medicine cabinet for my Excedrin, Midol and trusty Neosporin with a pack of Band-Aids. Once all the necesseties were packed, I grabbed the few bottles of nail polish that I actually owned, and threw those in the box too.

I took the box back into my bedroom, intent on taping it up. I grabbed the tape, but couldn't make it work right on the stupid tape gun. After nine tries, I stomped my foot, let out a scream of frustration, then threw the stupid tape gun onto the bed and just fucking gave up.

"What happened, love?" Edward asked after appearing out of thin air.

I grabbed a marker off my desk, deciding to label the few boxes that were packed already instead. "I was trying to tape up my box but I can't get the stupid tape gun to work," I said, frustrated.

Edward grabbed it, chuckling lightly about it being 'child proof', then ever-so-expertly taped up the stupid box with my bathroom stuff in it.

"Shut up," I grumbled, which only made him laugh louder.

"You're fucking precious," he said before grabbing my stereo and cds off the shelf and heading back downstairs to finish packing up my electronics.

**My tin box, Bell. Don't forget my box.**

_What tin box?_ I asked, then immediately saw a picture of it from her memory.

I immediately started looking everywhere in the room for it, feeling her immense, almost _desperate_ need for this…box.

**Just find it. It's not in my hidey-hole anymore.**

I checked everywhere, and couldn't find it.

**Ask Edward. NOW, goddamn it** she demanded.

After I looked under the bed, I decided to go ahead and ask Edward. I went to the top of the staircase and yelled for him. In a flash, he appeared at the bottom of the staircase and looked up at me.

"What is it, love?"

I shifted my feet nervously, not liking this longing feeling Marie was causing me. I didn't understand it. "Um...do you know anything about a tin box?"

His facial features quickly shifted to a blank expression and he stayed quiet.

I took a deep breath and breathed it out, not understanding his reaction. "It's just that, you know…I was up there packing, and then all of a sudden Marie mentions something about a…tin box? I saw a picture in my mind of what it looks like and when I saw the picture of it from her memory, I got this horribly desperate feeling that came with it. She _needs_ this box, okay? So um…do you know where it is?"

He was impassive.

I sight and tried again. "Okay, do you even know what I'm talking about? I don't understand this feeling she is giving me…" I tried to explain, now feel very desperate for him to just tell me where the stupid box was already. "Why?…why is this box so important?" I asked in a shaky breath.

He looked at me a second longer then came upstairs to stand by me. He looked right in my eyes and said, "Okay, I know that Marie can hear me right now. So I'm gonna talk to her for a second, alright?"

I nodded, unsure of what was going on.

"Marie, I _told you_ I was getting rid of that box, and that I didn't want you touching it anymore," he said sternly.

**Fuck you, Edward. Give me my goddamn box!**

"Whoa…" I breathed out, covering my ears by instinct because of her sudden loud voice in my head.

My eyes widened.

_What the hell Marie?_

**Just shut up and get my fucking box, Bell. Persuade him, bribe him, suck his dick - I don't care, just do _something_ to make him give it back.**

I furrowed my brow and he asked, "What did she say?"

I uncovered my ears, shook my head a bit and asked, "Does she always talk to you like that?" I asked incredulously.

"Like what? What did she say?" he asked again.

"She said 'fuck you Edward give me my goddamn box' before she suggested that I suck your dick as a persuasion to get it back," I replied slowly, completely confused.

His eyes squinted in anger.

I spoke again before he could say something else to Marie. "Edward, what's going on? What's with this tin box?"

"It's what she kept her marijuana, pipe and lighter in. She hid it under the floorboard of your bedroom where I stashed your presents from last year. She must have been watching when I pried it back open and gave them back to you last week," he explained. "Nothing else was in that box…nothing of sentimental value. But if she wants a box that is just hers, for her keepsakes and stuff, then I can take her shopping for a similar one tomorrow. But she will not be using it to store drugs or anything else illegal. Is that clear?" he asked me, but I'm pretty sure a lot of it was meant for Marie.

**GOD FUCKING DAMN IT!** her loud voice boomed inside my head.

I cringed.

_Shut up! Fucking pot head. This is **my** body. No. More. Smoking._

**Fuck you _and_ Edward.**

I just nodded to Edward in response, not trusting my voice.

"What did she say?" he asked after a minute of my internal conversation while I glared at the wall beside his face.

"She's pissed."

"That's too bad," he replied nonchalantly.

"I agree," I told him before heading back over to my bedroom. It looked like it had been ransacked after my frantic searching for that stupid box a minute ago.

I took some calming breaths after my head went completely silent and after I labeled the packed boxes, I went downstairs with another box and headed towards the kitchen. I passed by Edward knelt down on the floor, carefully organizing my cds and dvds on top of my small boom box stereo in his box, and smiled. I placed a kiss on the top of his head and continued on my path to the kitchen.

I opened the cabinets and grabbed my pop tarts, macaroni & cheese, granola bars, cheese ritz-bitz crackers, and tomato soup cans. I opened the fridge and grabbed my small Sunny D bottles. I had eight of them left and I put all of them in there. I took my magnets off of the refrigerator and put those in the box also.

Edward walked up behind me with that annoying tape gun and showed off his taping skills, once again, while I rolled my eyes at him. He smiled and gave me a wink, then walked back out of the kitchen. I labeled that box and brought into the living room, sitting it beside the front door next to the box labeled 'Bella's Electronics'.

We went back up to my room together and I grabbed another box off of the floor, heading over to my bookshelf.

"I'm going to take these downstairs," he said, pointing to the three boxes and black trash bag, "then I'll come back up and help you with those heavy books, baby."

I nodded and sat down on the floor, starting to pull books out and put them in the box. Soon, Edward was back in my room, sitting beside me with a box of his own. We sat in companionable silence, packing up my huge book collection.

After we had each filled up a box, Edward broke out that damn tape gun again. I labeled the boxes after he was done showing off, and he took those boxes downstairs to put with the rest of them.

We had five boxes left, and I grabbed one of them on the floor and scooted it over to where I was, then continued packing up my bookshelf. Edward came back up and grabbed another box as well, and we repeated the process of trying to pack all of my books.

After he went downstairs the second time with the fourth box of books, I grabbed another box for the last of my miniature library. When Edward came back upstairs, he sat beside me with the tape gun in his lap, and absently played with the long strands of my hair as I finished the packing.

I had come across my photo albums and started carefully putting them in the box. When I picked up the old white one filled with my childhood pictures that I brought with me from phoenix, a picture slipped out of it and landed on the floor by my knee. I glanced at it, intent on picking it up and just slipping it back in place, but what I saw on the glossy paper made my heart skip a beat and I froze.


	12. Isabella's Torture

BPOV

It was a picture of Jim and a very young me sitting on a porch swing together. Jim was my mom's old boyfriend when I was little…five years old to be exact. The man who tortured and severely abused me when my mother wasn't around. He had made my life hell for two years and now there was a picture of him on my bedroom floor staring up at me.

My eyes immediately welled up with tears and I was breathing shaky breaths. I could hear Edward's voice in my ear, but couldn't make out what he was saying and I couldn't rip my gaze away from that damn picture no matter how hard I tried. That man's face sent chills down my spine and made my skin crawl.

**No…** I heard a small voice whimper.

It confused me for a second before realization hit me. _Isabella._ That was her fucking voice!

_Oh my God…_

Edward must have finally realized what my eyes were trained on, and he picked up that picture off the floor, taking it away from my frightened eyes. Reality crashed back into me at full force, with Edward's frantic calls of my name. I turned my head slowly, trying my best to avoid letting my line of sight land on that fucking abomination again.

Tears were streaming down my face and I was trying my best to breath. Instead of hyperventilating, I seemed to be forgetting to breath back in once I had breathed out.

"Bella," Edward's voice was loud and firm as he took my face into his hands.

I looked into his concerned, but reassuring gaze, trying to ground myself.

"Bella, what's wrong? What happened?" he practically yelled. Then his eyes flicked down to my chest before they met my eyes again. "Your heart is going into overdrive….fuck," he said desperately with beautifully furrowed eyebrows.

"Get…_*gasp*_ rid of…_*gasp*_ that picture._*gasp*_ Fuck…_*gasp*_ I can't…_*gasp*_ breathe_…gasp*_ Edward, help…" I whispered my frantic plea to him.

His eyes widened, and he quickly ripped the picture to shreds with his weird, sharp nails that apparently, appear only when he wants them to…like a cat's claws. A second later, he scooped me up into his lap and held me tightly to him.

Once I was in his comforting embrace, he kept murmuring into my ear, repeatedly chanting, "Calm down, baby. You're okay," while I tried to breathe through my panic attack.

**No, no, no…** that small voice whispered in my head again.

I clenched my eyes shut, trying to tell myself that I was imagining her voice. Isabella was my first problem with split personality disorder when I was five years old. She stuck by me through all the abuse and was my best friend until I had to start going to a doctor for it when I was ten. A year later, her voice just disappeared. Now, with the visual reminder of that sick fuck, Jim, her voice is resurfacing.

_What does that mean?_

A whole ten minutes later, my breathing had calmed, and my limp body was rested against Edward's chest while he rocked us. I didn't want him to go out of his mind with worry anymore, so I lifted my head to look into his face.

What I saw there broke my heart. It was like he was tortured with his worry. I suddenly hated myself for causing him so much pain. I cupped his face into my small hands and kissed his lips softly in what I hoped was a reassuring gesture. When we broke apart, I could see that his features had relaxed a bit.

"Bella?" he questioned my name and left it at that. He was expecting me to explain what had just happened.

"Um...I'm sorry Edward. I didn't know that was going to happen," I said softly in apology.

We sat on the floor, me in his lap, and him with his back against the side of my bed. He gently kissed my forehead, then my nose, both of my tear-stained cheeks, then my chin and eventually, placed a kiss right over my heart. After he sighed a couple times, his gold gaze met mine again.

"Why? Why did that happen? Your heart's pace was going crazy. I was so _worried_," he choked out the last sentence, unable to finish.

I kissed his cool lips again, before I spoke. I kept my voice soft and soothing for his benefit, now that I was calmed down. It was clear that he was in need of some calming now. I lightly ran my fingers through his bronze locks and started to speak.

"I don't know why that picture was in my old photo album. It wasn't supposed to be. Um, before I go on, will you promise to look through it before we pack it? Make sure that any pictures of that particular man are not in there. If they are, destroy them, okay? Promise?" I pressed.

He nodded solemnly and reached into the box. He grabbed the photo album in question, and placed it down on the floor beside him, making sure to keep it closed. I eyed it warily before continuing on.

"Edward, let me start with explaining why I didn't get any psychological help when I first noticed that Marie was around," I suggested while shifting my position in his lap to get more comfortable. "I didn't go get help, because I already knew what she was and what was going on. I am very educated on split personality disorder because I have had this problem before," I revealed.

He gasped a bit at this information, but I continued on, fully intent on explaining everything.

"When I was five years old I was severely abused by that man. The man in the picture." He instinctually growled, but I didn't stop talking. "For two years, I was tortured by him. He was my mother's boyfriend at the time, and she was so blinded by love that she didn't see the signs I was displaying that clearly screamed 'abused child'. It took her two and a half years to finally realize something was going on. She dumped him, and charges were filed on him. He was prosecuted and I was ordered by the court system to see a psychiatrist because of my behavioral problems. And the fact that I had this very vivid, very real 'imaginary friend' that I always 'pretended' to be," I explained, using air quotes.

Our eyes were locked and I knew that I had his utter and complete attention.

I took a calming breath and said, "Edward, it wasn't an imaginary friend. I had split personality when I was five years old. Her name, ironically enough, was Isabella. At my young age, some things happened differently though. Different from how they happen now with Marie. I would actually see her…like, another little girl standing right beside me. Her name was my full first name, and I started going by Bella to be able to tell us apart. We always looked the same…my mind's mirrored image of myself, like looking in the mirror. As weird as it sounds, she was my best friend. She stuck by my side through all of the abuse, and…she knew about my shame…my embarrassment…the marks on my body, and she didn't judge me or think that I was a 'bad girl', like Jim said people would think if they knew about the marks he always left on me. The marks were always discreet and easily hidden by my clothing. He said that if people saw the marks, then they would see the 'evil' that was inside of me. That people would hate me because of it," I explained.

His face looked horrified at this. "I know, I know…it's fucked up. He is a sick individual. You know, during the trial, he was found to be criminally insane and delusional. So that would explain all of his messed up views."

"What messed up views, baby?" he whispered and tucked some of my hair behind my ear and placed a cool kiss to my cheek.

"Okay, _that's_ another long story in itself," I notified him.

He nodded, silently telling me to continue.

"Okay, did you know that I'm half-Jewish?" I began.

He shook his head.

"Well, I am. And that fact sealed my doom from the beginning. It's the reason for all of it. All of the torture and his cruel intentions towards me…a harmless five year old little girl. Not only was he not right in his head, but he was a very prejudice, racist man. He was a member of one of those radical groups…you know, like the KKK or the skinheads, or something? I was never really clear on which of those particular evil cults he associated himself with, I just knew that he was a very hateful, intolerant, arrogant man."

Edward started lightly running his cool fingers up and down my back while keeping his gaze fixed on my face.

I sighed, and began my story. "One day, in the beginning of my mom's relationship with him, he casually suggested that we go to church together. You know, like a family outing and I remember him saying that I would enjoy Sunday School a lot because there were other kids there that I could play with. But my mother refused, telling him about my birth father. My dad, Charlie, is Jewish. He doesn't practice the religion by any means, but when I went to live with my mom, he made it very clear that he didn't want me attending any of those 'Sunday-keeping Christian churches' and that if I was going to practice any religion at all as a child, than it would be through the Hebrew faith. My mom wasn't religious at all, so she easily agreed with this. So, when my mom explained to Jim, that we weren't religious and that if I wanted to learn about religion, then I would be going to a temple learn about my Hebrew heritage and practice my faith as a Jew," I explained.

He nodded again, clearly absorbing all of this information with no problem, so I continued on.

"Well, he was not happy with that revelation at all. I could see it in his eyes...the way they instantly turned on me and went cold and hard. I was playing with my dolls in the living room when that conversation took place, and I remember feeling his eyes on me. I turned to face him after my mom went into the kitchen, and the way he just stared at me…with so much fucking hatred and anger, it really scared me. I remember running to my mom and starting to cry. She didn't know what was wrong, but I wasn't going to tell her that it was just because he had looked at me in a strange way. I was a big girl…five whole years old and I didn't want her to think I was being a baby, you know?" I said sadly.

He nodded.

"She picked me up, confused about why I was suddenly so upset, but comforted me anyway before telling me to put my toys away and get cleaned up for dinner. The next day, my mom was talking to me excitedly about how nice Jim was and that hopefully he would be my 'new daddy'. The way her face lit up when she spoke of him made me smile. I could tell that he made her happy, and I put my initial fears of him aside, telling myself that I had imagined the whole thing. I told myself that he hadn't really just stared at me as if I were a devil-child and he wanted to kill me to rid the world of my evil nature…" I realized some tears had started to fall when Edward wiped them away with his thumb.

I quickly composed myself and kept talking, trying to get through my horrible story.

"So that morning, Mom had to work, and she said that she was going to take me over to his house so he could babysit me. She told me that he had said that he wanted to get to know me better…you know, take me to the park, bond, or whatever." I sniffled. "So, we get over to his house and it's really creepy on the inside. I remember going to check out his backyard, because backyards were fun. You could play outside in them and there were usually toys back there. At least, that's how all the backyards were that I had been to." I paused, then sighed, "There weren't any toys back there," I informed him sadly.

"By the time, I came back into the house from the barren, small, and boring backyard, my mom was gone. She had left to go to work, without kissing me goodbye. The fact that I didn't get my kiss, made me _really_ sad. I don't know why, but it did. He watched as I ran over to the windows at the front of the house, and stood on my tippy-toes to look out for my mom's car. I thought that maybe if she hadn't left yet, then I could just run out there real quick and get my goodbye kiss, and then I wouldn't feel so sad anymore. I missed my mom a lot when she would be gone for long days at her job, and I always tried to get affection from her whenever she was around. She had never left without kissing me goodbye before, and I didn't understand. Had I done something wrong? Was I in trouble? How could she just forget…?" I repeated the questions that ran through my head at the time to Edward in a sad, soft voice.

He looked sad and softly pecked my lips, as if he was trying to make up for my missing goodbye kiss. I gave him a small, watery smile in appreciation and continued on.

"Anyway, so I'm at the huge windows at the front of his creepy house and he's watching me. I can feel those cold eyes on me again. When I peek my head out and see that my mom's car had already left, my tears started falling. I was just so _devastated_. I let go of the window sill and turned around to face Jim. I started to cry, saying 'I want my mommy' and that's when it happened."

I breathed in and sighed, then said, "He hit me. Smacked me right across my face. You can already guess that I started screaming from the pain. I had never felt that kind of pain before, and he had hit me _really_ hard. That's when he started his ranting and raving about how I was an evil child and how he was going to 'purify me' of the devil. He said that my Jewish heritage was ugly and evil and how 'God doesn't like ugly' and how God hates me. How my father and I are going to burn in the eternal fires of damnation in hell." I shook my head a bit. "And I mean, it's needless to say that his long speech that he spat at me, scared the shit out of me. Telling me, a five year old, that I'm going to burn alive with my daddy and that God hates me? I was _terrified_. And as if that wasn't enough, he drags me down into his basement that he says he has 'prepared' for me, and when we get down there, I see that it's filled with all kinds of ugly, scary things. Weird looking tools. I know now that they were torture devices," I finished and went silent.

A minute later, I offered as an after thought, "Um...that's why I trip a lot," I admitted, looking down into my lap. "One of my many injuries he gave me, was a brain concussion. It caused some swelling, and the doctors said that my balance might be affected indefinitely because of it."

When I was finished, I looked back into Edward's gaze. I needed to see his beautiful gold eyes for reassurance.

Edward had a haunted look on his face, in which I'm sure reflected the look on my own. He reached his hand up to my face and ran his fingertips down my cheeks, then along the sides of my neck ever so gently, as if he was afraid I would break any minute now.

After I cleared the lump in my throat, I whispered, "And that's all I have to say about that."

He kept his sad eyes on mine and leaned forward to press a very gentle kiss to my forehead, then enveloped me tightly in his arms. He started rocking us slowly, and whispered softly in my ear, "My Bella…I'm so sorry. I'm sorry you had to go through that. I'm sorry I wasn't there to save you," he apologized and continued his gentle ministrations.

I just ran my fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck, trying to provide him some comfort. I didn't understand his need to always take the blame upon himself.

I whispered back in his ear, "It's not your fault, Edward," and sealed my promise with a kiss to his neck.

After a while he loosened his hold on me and I figured it was time to explain a little more about Isabella.

"Um, Edward?"

"Yes, Bella?" he asked, keeping eye contact with me.

"I, umm…I -"

"What is it, baby?" he asked, then started running his hands up and down my sides.

"When I saw Jim's picture unexpectedly, and I started freaking out?"

"Mmm-hmm…" he hummed, clearly remembering my panic attack not ten minutes ago.

"Well, when I was ten years old, and I went to that court ordered counseling, they found out what was wrong with me. I was treated for split-personality disorder and was even hospitalized for three months. Shortly after that, Isabella stopped coming around. And her voice just sort of, um…_disappeared_ from my head."

He nodded, "Okay…"

I hesitated, but then just decided to blurt it out. "Well, when I saw his picture just now, I heard her voice again. In my head. And I'm _freaking out_ because I don't know what that means," I explained in a rushed voice.

His hands on my sides stopped and after a second, he whispered, "What?"

"I heard her," I explained further. "I mean, it was just a whisper of her voice, but I would know her voice anywhere. She still sounds exactly the same, and I am freaking out right now," I said, my voice starting to get a little frantic.

"Okay, calm down Bella, You're gonna get yourself worked up again." His hands started working on my sides again. I started taking slow, calming breaths and he muttered, "We need to get you something for anxiety, sweetheart."

I nodded. That sounded like a good idea.

"Okay, it's going to be alright, Bella. So if this Isabella is still in your complex mind, then that's _okay_. Okay? We'll still be here and Carlisle is still going to help you with this, baby. Nothing is going to change, alright? It's gonna be okay…" he said softly with a reassuring gaze.

"Even if her personality is still strongly prominent in my mind, and she eventually decides to come out and say 'hi'? What about when I start acting like a five-year old, Edward?" I asked him, trying to make him see the complications of this.

He nodded. "I thought of that, Bella. And it's still going to be okay," he said.

I started to shake my head and he sighed, exasperated. "I love you, alright? Bella, _I love you_. All of you. Any other personality of yours that is stuck inside your head, I will love too. They are all apart of you. Don't you see that, baby? These personalities…however many there are, are all broken pieces of you. And when you put them all together, they make up what matters most to me in the whole world. _You_. It's all you. And it's going to be okay," he said firmly. "Even if I get to meet this Isabella, and it causes you to act like a timid five year old little girl, I will _still_ be here and I will take care of you. Do you understand?" he said with conviction.

I just shut up and nodded. I wish I could stop doubting him. I know that he really does love me.

"Okay, how about you go downstairs and watch some TV while I finish up in here. I'll go through this album," he said while pointing to the white book at his side, "and then we can be on our way. The family misses you, and it's time for your dinner, baby," he said.

I looked at the clock, noticing that it was close to 7pm. I nodded and he helped me up off his lap. I walked out of my room and went downstairs without looking back.


	13. Home

A/N:

This chapter, like the last one, touches on some child abuse.

* * *

EPOV

When Bella went downstairs, I immediately started flipping through that damn album, looking for pictures of the monster that had tortured my Bella not so long ago. While I was searching, I took my phone out and dialed Carlisle's cell number. He picked up on the second ring and I quickly explained what had just happened and everything that Bella had told me, asking him to inform everyone that there is the possibility of a second personality coming around.

During our conversation, I found six pictures of that fucker. I was getting ready to destroy them, when Carlisle told me not to. He said that they could be a vital tool in her therapy that he would be putting her through. I was hesitant, remembering my Bella's panic and pain, but the educated doctor in me ultimately agreed. The reaction that Bella had from that picture told me that it could be a very useful visual prompt when trying to probe into those repressed memories.

So after putting the album in the box, I taped it up and put those six pictures in my wallet, then stuck my wallet back in my jean's pocket. I walked downstairs with the last box and saw Bella sitting on the couch watching Family Guy. I told her to stay put while I packed the boxes into the car, then we would be on our way.

When I was finished and walked back into the house to get Bella, she was writing a letter to Charlie, informing him that she was all moved out and that she would give him her phone number when she got the cell phone I'd be buying her next week.

"Bella are you ready?" I asked, standing in the doorway.

I wanted to get her home so that she could eat her dinner and then we could get her unpacked. I wanted her to be all settled in and comfortable before bedtime.

I was also suddenly anxious about another personality being a possibility. Marie is a handful and a fucking fireball, and then there's my Bella. My sweet, broken Bella. I need to give her so much attention and affection, that I just don't know how I'm going to handle having a third alternate Bella around. One that is a child? Will she be a handful too?

I wanted to get her to the house, so that in case something happened, then Carlisle would be there. I could handle her all by myself easily, but Carlisle was her doctor, not me. He would need to witness anything that happens. He has already missed so much of Marie and it has only been one day.

"Yeah," Bella said while putting the cap back on her pen.

She then followed me out to my Volvo after locking up the house and we were on our way home.

"Sweetheart, when we get there, just go on inside, okay? Esme should have your dinner ready and I'm going to bring these boxes up to our bedroom. Alice asked if she could unpack your clothes and I told her that she could. I hope that's alright," I said then kissed her knuckles on the hand that I was currently holding.

She nodded, "Yeah that's fine, but I want to unpack my books and movies and stuff."

"That's fine. I'll get started on those while your eating, then when you're done, you can unpack the kitchen and bathroom boxes," I suggested.

"Yeah, okay," she agreed, and turned on some music.

Bella relaxed back into her seat and I found myself almost wishing that Marie would come out and sing along to the songs for me.

When we got home, Bella went inside and I started bringing all the boxes in, along with the trash bag full of her dirty clothes. While Bella was eating, Carlisle joined her for some conversation. I was glad that he was keeping her company while I took care of settling in all of my Bella's belongings.

Esme came over and took the trash bag off my hands, heading over to the laundry room. Alice joined me in my room and ripped open the two boxes full of Bella's casual clothes, putting them in their respective places.

While upstairs, busy with unpacking, I kept monitoring Bella downstairs through Carlisle's mind. I knew that she was fine, but I felt a compulsive need to keep a constant eye on her.

I sat down on the floor and began to unpack all of her books into the two new bookshelves that Alice had put in here this afternoon. After I was done with those, I got her dvds, cds and Nintendo DS stuff out of their box and just set those down on the bed. I would let her put those wherever she liked.

I took her small boom box into the bathroom and set it up in there for her since I already had a stereo system in our bedroom. I smiled at the thought of Marie singing along to the radio in the shower.

I put the box labeled 'Bella's Crap for the Bathroom' in the bathroom, leaving it for her to unpack before she showered tonight. Then I picked up the box that was labeled for the kitchen and headed downstairs.

When I passed by Bella at the dining room table, I quickly gave the top of her head a kiss like she had done with me earlier today, then proceeded into the kitchen. Once I set the box on top of the counter, I walked back over to the dining room table.

Taking a seat and relaxing next to my Bella, I started running my fingers through her long, beautiful hair while she ate some mashed potatoes and carried on her conversation with Carlisle.

She had just finished telling him what she had told me earlier about her past and the fact that she had heard this younger personality's voice in her head when she saw a picture of the one named Jim. She was very uneasy about hearing this small voice, and I could understand her apprehension on the matter.

_Hmmm…Jim. Short for James. Coincidence?_ Carlisle suddenly thought at me.

Woah…

Now that would be a crazy coincidence: if the vampire I had destroyed last year whom was so intent on hurting Bella to get at me, turned out to actually be this Jim person turned undead.

But they didn't look anything alike.

I imperceptibly shook my head at him. I would show him the cursed pictures soon, so he could confirm for himself that Jim was, in fact, _not_ James.

I heard Esme's thoughts then, telling me that she was unpacking the kitchen box for Bella, then would go on upstairs and proceed to set up Bella's bathroom for her. Esme cared about Bella very much, but felt so helpless as to what to do about this situation, so she had resolved to just make her stay here as comfortable as possible.

I quietly whispered a thanks to Esme and continued on, listening to Carlisle's conversation with my Bella.

Bella was nibbling on her corn-on-the-cob when Carlisle notified me that he was bringing up the idea that he had about the potentially-hazardous pictures.

I braced myself for Bella's reaction then gave Carlisle a slight nod.

"Bella...hun, I'm going to tell you something that may upset you," he started before he paused to gauge her reaction.

She put the corn down and furrowed her brow. "What?" she asked bluntly.

"Edward called me a little while ago, while you two were packing and notified me of these pictures…the ones that caused you to have your panic attack."

"One. It was just one picture," she corrected him before turning her head to me. "Were there any more?" she asked me.

I nodded in response and she mumbled an 'okay' before turning her gaze back to Carlisle.

"Bella, I asked him not to destroy those pictures, be-"

She gasped, "Why?" she demanded

"If you'll give me a minute to explain…" he paused and when she was silent, he continued. "Gauging from the reaction you had to that particular picture, I can guarantee you that it is necessary for your therapy and it will help you in the long run. It will be an excellent visual prompt for some of your repressed memories that we have to dig out in order for you to truly start to recover. I apologize in advance for any distress this will cause you…because, Bella, you _will_ be in distress," he informed her.

After a minute, she replied weakly, "I know. I know I'll be 'in distress'. But whatever. Whatever you think will help, then okay..." she said, sounding completely defeated before her gaze turned to me.

"You _promised_ me," she accused in a whispered voice that cracked.

She looked so betrayed in that moment that I wanted to take it all back. I wanted to rip those damn pictures up right fucking now and save her from all the pain her therapy would cause, but I couldn't.

I couldn't because I love her.

And I want and need what's best for her.

And what's best for Bella is for her to get better.

"Bella, I love you. And this is for the best," I reasoned with her, then went to kiss her forehead but she turned her head away from me and looked straight ahead, locking her gaze onto the table top.

I sighed, hurt and suddenly tired from bearing the weight of this decision. "I'm sorry…" was all I could say.

She ignored the apology.

_My stubborn beauty…_

Carlisle spoke then, taking the attention away from me and my betrayal. "Bella, I would like to get a start on this…visual therapy. I'm going to have Edward turn those pictures over to me and when I think you're ready for this part in your therapy, then they will be ready for you. But right now, I would like to see, for myself, what exactly we're dealing with here. Jasper is here in the house for you, so there's no need to worry about another panic attack. Edward already informed me that you need something for your occasional anxiety and I intend to bring you home some medication for that tomorrow from the hospital. So…if it's alright with you, will you please look at one of the pictures?"

She immediately looked apprehensive, so he was quick to reassure her. "Just a glance, and then I promise I will take it away."

After a minute of some thought she sighed, defeated and shrugged. "Whatever," she muttered.

At that, Carlisle reached his hand out towards me. I regretted it, but stood anyway, and got my wallet out. I walked over by Carlisle and put the pictures in front of him, making sure they were face-down, taking comfort in the fact that I wouldn't be the one to show my Bella those terrible freeze-frames.

I walked back over to my seat and noticed how Bella's hard stare was trained on the six white squares of paper in front of Carlisle. The look on her face was one of fear, apprehension and anger. Her eyes started to well up with tears and he hadn't even shown then to her yet.

"Six…" was her broken whisper as she let a tear fall.

"Okay, Bella are you ready? Just one picture and then it's all done."

She sniffled and nodded, nevert taking her eyes off the pictures, probably wondering which one Carlisle was going to flip over.

Suddenly, the picture all the way to his left was flipped face up and a sob instantly tore through my Bella's throat. She covered her mouth with her hand and squinted her eyes to see through the tears.

I grabbed a hold of her other hand to let her know that I was here for her. Stressed at the sound of her grief, I started rubbing slow circles into her palm as I chanced a look over to the picture that my Bella couldn't seem to tear her eyes away from.

It was a picture of a very young, very adorable Bella. Her long shiny hair was in low pigtails and she was sitting on Jim's shoulders in a little pink swim suit…and his large hands had a tight grip on her knees, ensuring that she didn't fall off. The man had a large smile on his face and it appeared that they were at some kind of family or friend outing with the grill going on in the back round and other kids playing in a pool nearby.

But little Bella wasn't smiling. She was looking off to the side, biting her lip, appearing to be sad and distracted by something.

For some reason, the image disturbed me. Maybe because I knew the reason why my little Bella wasn't smiling.

Suddenly Bella's hand ripped out of mine and she shot up from her chair.

Carlisle's eyes grew wide at her change in demeanor when she started stomping over to him. Her movements were hard, fast and jerky, clearly showing anger as she leaned over by him and started snatching up the pictures, one by one.

"Bella…" Carlisle eased in a smooth voice as he started to reach out to still her shaky hands.

His thoughts were clear and he was determined to use those pictures for therapy.

I was surprised, and a little more than shocked, when the hand that he was reaching for suddenly shot out to grab a fistful of his hair as she screamed at him, only inches away from his face.

"Don't fucking touch me!" was her shrill demand.

She then snatched her hand out of his hair, as if it had burned her, before she proceeded to stomp her way over towards the living room.

"Shit…" I muttered and hurried to follow after Bella, with Carlisle right behind me.

I was surprised to see her stop in front of Emmett. He nervously looked her up and down, knowing full well what was going on. The entire family had been here throughout her dinner discussion with Carlisle. He saw her furious, tear-stained face, and her wild eyes still flowing with tears. He took into account her elevated heart rate and labored breaths, then turned to look at me.

"Um, Edward…" he said with apprehension.

"No!" Bella yelled at him. "You fucking look at me, Em. Not these assholes, " she said, pointing behind her towards Carlisle and me.

"Alright?" she continued. "Now, I have a very fucking important question to ask you."

His nervous eyes drifted over to me again, his thoughts telling me of his reluctance, but she just yelled at him again.

"Goddamn it Em, what the fuck did I just tell you?" she yelled, demanding his attention.

Rosalie rushed down the stairs and stood by Emmett, then proceeded to glare at Bella. Her thoughts said that she was feeling hostile and protective of her mate.

_Yeah, like my Bella could ever actually hurt him _I thought with a roll of my eyes.

She was being ridiculous and her behavior would only potentially cause further damage to a situation that was already quickly spiraling out of control. She needed to just fucking back off, and I was suddenly very angry at my sister for interfering where she clearly wasn't needed.

Bella caught her look then, and spat, "Fuck off, blondie," at her, proving my point, before she turned back to Emmett to see that she had his full attention now.

Rosalie snarled at Bella's comment, to which Bella responded with, "Goddamn it, go ahead…try something. I motherfucking dare you. Go on and see what happens, you melodramatic bitch."

Okay, it was clear that we were dealing with Marie now, and surprisingly from everyone's thoughts, they had interpreted that too. They all knew that my Bella never acted like this.

"What's up, Marie?" Emmett asked, trying to keep his tone light. He didn't want to upset her anymore than she appeared to be.

She realized then that tears were still spilling out of her eyes, down her cheeks, and she angrily wiped them away, slightly slapping her own cheeks in the process, while muttering "Such a fucking pansy…"

When she looked back up at Emmett, her simple answer was, "You got a lighter, Em? Dad never let us play with fire at his shithole and Edward fucking stole my last one." She huffed then and muttered in my direction, "Goddamn thief…" clearly still bitter about me taking her marijuana away.

_Well, too fucking bad, little girl._

He quickly shook his head, to which she responded with, "Don't fucking lie to me!" screaming in his face and stepping closer to him.

Rosalie growled then, and Marie turned to face her. "Fuck you," she spat harshly, almost nose to nose with the vampire.

"Edward," Carlisle said, getting my attention. "Take care of her," he said firmly.

"Right," I muttered, then walked over to Marie. "Marie, come here," I told her, before attempting to grab a hold of her hand.

She turned to face the sound of my voice and started backing away. "No, you're a goddamn liar," she hissed accusingly at me.

I kept advancing on her with a determined, but apologetic look on my face.

"Don't touch me!" she yelled, before I wrapped my arm around her small waist, now fully aware that she had intended to run. "No!" she screamed, then lost her composure as I picked her up. She broke down then, and started to cry.

"I hate you!" she screamed and sobbed out, crumpling the pictures tightly in her fists and repeating her heartbreaking mantra of 'I hate you'.

She started thrashing around and kicking at my shins, clearly on a mission to just get away and escape, like Marie's instincts were telling her to do. But we couldn't allow that, and I needed her calm.

This whole episode was quickly draining me emotionally. With every screamed 'I Hate You', and every aching sob that wracked her small body, and every pitiful tear that fell out of her beautiful eyes, my heart broke a little more. I had never wanted to do anything as much as I wanted to just go back and destroy those pictures when I had the chance.

Carlisle came around to my side, and she started using her lower body strength to try and kick out at him. She was just so angry. Beneath the hurt on her face, I could tell that she was furious, her blood boiling with the intensity of it.

Jasper came downstairs, clearly alarmed by the emotional chaos that was happening down here, and that's when I noticed Alice standing off to the side, with a devastated, helpless look on her face while she watched this horrible scene play out in front of her.

"Jasper, please," Carlisle requested, then I felt Jasper send the room waves of calm and I could feel Marie's body start to go limp in my grasp.

Gracefully, I shrunk down to the floor with her in my arms. I kept her body close to mine, keeping my arms tightly around her chest, holding her slim arms to her sides and moved one of my legs to rest lightly, but firmly, on top of both of her short ones.

I kept whispering, "I'm sorry," and "I love you," calmly in her ear as her body slowly but surely succumbed to Jasper's talent.

Once the room was silent, except for Marie's labored breaths, Carlisle sat down in front of us and started to gather the crumpled pictures from her now limp hands while she glared at him. He immediately handed them to Alice, and she quickly went to work on trying to straighten them out to the best of her ability with a sad look on her face.

I was surprised, for the millionth fucking time today, when Marie was the one that broke the silence.

"You fucking listen to me doc, and you'd better listen up good," she started in a controlled, angry voice. "Do not _ever_ show those pictures to my Bell again, do you understand me?"

"Why?" he asked softly, now that the atmosphere seemed to be calming down.

"I don't fucking know," she growled, exasperated. "But that doesn't matter. _Never_. _Again_." she repeated empatically. "Got it?"

He didn't answer right away, so she added, "And if you get the smartass idea to try and hide the goddamn things, and I see that you have upset _my_ Bell again with those motherfucking abominations, I will _not_ hesitate to burn your fucking house down, in an effort to get rid of that shit for good," she threatened.

"Marie, I don't think you would commit arson…" Carlisle trailed off as he shook his head in disbelief.

"Try me," she challenged casually with a glare.

"Marie, I'm-" I started, but she interrupted me.

"Shut up, I'm mad at you," she said with a scowl.

I kissed her temple and sighed. "I still love you…"

When she didn't respond, Carlisle got comfortable sitting Indian style on the floor in front of us, then tried to speak to her again. "Marie, what did that man in those pictures do to Bella?" he asked her.

"I don't know. All I know is the general stuff from some of my Bell's memory, and that goddamn speech that she gave our Edward earlier." She swallowed thickly, before continuing. "My memories are of pain, loss and abandonment. Rapists, drug dealers, bloodsucking vampires, and motherfucking huge, scary ass werewolves. The fucked up memories of that man are _not_ mine. They are Isabella's," she explained, still breathing hard.

"Isabella's?" he asked, not knowing that was the name of the other apparent personality.

"Yes! Goddamn it, are you fucking deaf? Did I stutter?" she asked with indignation. "_Isabella's_," she repeated slowly and deliberately, as if insinuating that Carlisle was a stupid man.

Carlisle sighed, getting frustrated and clearly not knowing how to handle Marie's attitudes yet. "Well then, tell me what you _do_ know. Please."

"The man in the picture tortured my Bell. Abuse…mentally, sexually, and physically," she said while trying to squirm in my arms, clearly not enjoying our audience.

The entire family had gathered into the room with us.

I kissed the top of her head apologetically and tightened my hold on her.

"Sexually?" Carlisle asked after a second, trying at the same time to think of and block out the kind of physical damage that a rape can do to a tiny five-year-old's body.

Before Marie could answer, I said, "Bella insists that she's still a virgin."

"She is."

I furrowed my brow. "Well, then-"

"I can't fucking believe this," she whispered incredulously, before she said, "Are you calling me a goddamn liar, Cullen?" she asked defensively.

"No, I-" I started, but was interrupted again.

"What, you don't believe me? You wanna check for yourself? Shit, go ahead…pop my hood and take a look at the goods, Edward," she suggested before smirking and adding slyly, "Maybe you can get a nice _taste_ while you're down there."

Carlisle interrupted her very unexpected sexual innuendo. "What I'm sure he means is, how could she have been sexually abused and still be a virgin?"

"Jesus _fucking_ Christ, and you call yourself a doctor," she said exasperatedly, shaking her head.

"What happened?" Carlisle tried again.

Marie was silent then, for three whole minutes, appearing to ignore him, before she finally spoke. "That is none of your goddamn business, doc. Fucking. Drop. It," she said lowly, and started to squirm under his gaze.

"Marie, It wo-"

She interrupted him, suddenly furious again that he wouldn't just drop the subject, like she clearly wanted him too. "Goddamn it…" she grumbled before she screamed, "Fine!" in his face.

Then she began the rant that would haunt me for the rest of my long, immortal life.

"Fucked her ass! Fucked her mouth!" she yelled into the room.

Everyone was stunned into silence as Marie continued on, her tone harsh, and her voice still loud, but not quite yelling anymore.

"Touched her and forced her to touch him. Took different torture devices to her virginal little pussy," she informed him angrily.

Multiple hisses from vampires sounded throughout the large room. Marie leaned her head back onto my chest, but kept her glare fixed on Carlisle. Once the room was silent again, she spoke in a worn out, tired voice.

"How's _that_ for your sexual abuse, doc? Hmm? Is that fucking good enough for you?"

He didn't answer, but just stared at her sadly, sympathy leaking from his thoughts.

I started to massage her little arms and block out all the mental images that Marie had just caused to be burned into my brain. I started whispering in her ear again, saying that I loved her, to try and distract myself. My mind was being flooded with thoughts of sympathy, and anger from the vampires that had gathered around us.

Nobody spoke.

Nobody knew what to say.

So we just stayed quiet, and I took comfort in the feel of the burn in my throat, as I stuck my nose to her soft, slim neck and inhaled deeply. The sound of my Bella's heartbeat wrapped me in serenity, and assured me that she was, indeed, alive and well, and _in my arms_.

Nothing like that would ever happen to her again. She had a coven of vampires that had vowed to protect her with their lives.

She was safe.

She was in my arms.

* * *

A/N:

Review for me please, sweets :)


	14. Daddy

BPOV

I opened my eyes to the sight of a very sad looking Carlisle. His gaze was intent on mine, like he had been staring at my face this whole time. I felt myself pressed up against a hard, cold body, that I knew was Edward. He had my arms pinned to my sides with one of his arms tight across my chest, and his other around my waist. I was sitting on the floor and both of my legs were being weighed down by one of his. I could feel his nose nuzzling on the side of my neck and felt his chest rise and fall with his deep breaths. I started to match my own breathing with his deep calming ones, as I started to feel myself panic a little at the sheer possibilities of what could have happened to land me in this position of restraint. I noticed that everything was very quiet. I moved my head a little to see the rest of my vampires standing around me in various positions in their living room. They all had worried expressions etched across their features, and I all of a sudden found myself needing some answers.

_What the hell happened?_

I knew that I had agreed with Carlisle to look at one of those blasted pictures, and then after my vision fills with tears, I could hear Marie's voice in my head, a string of profanities spewing from her mouth. My vision was blurred by the tears, so I guess when _she_ started causing the blurring, I hadn't noticed. But apparently, that is exactly what happened…and this couldn't be good if Edward had to hold me down like this.

I started to wiggle around a bit. I needed to stretch and I was getting a little cold. Edward didn't speak, but reflexively tightened his hold on me.

_Marie? Um…what the hell?_

Still no response.

I sighed. "Edward," I mumbled, realizing my throat was a bit sore.

Marie must have been screaming or yelling, or…_something_ to make my throat feel this raw.

"Bella…" he whispered in my ear, his cool, sweet breath fanning across my face.

I cleared my throat and looked down at Edward's arm around me. "Yeah?" I responded, wiggling around a bit.

He started to release his hold on me and repeated my name a little louder, but it was in question…like he was checking to see if I was myself again.

"Miss me?" I asked. When his only response was a relieved sigh, I started to try and get out of what was left of his grip. "Edward, what happened?"

He completely loosened his hold on me then, and Carlisle helped me to stand up. I stumbled a bit, but righted myself, and turned around to face the room full of my very still, very _disturbed_ looking vampire family.

Edward came and stood in front of me. I kept my eyes on Alice, who was looking downright heartbroken right now as I asked Edward again, "Edward?" then turned my confused gaze on him.

He looked so concerned.

"What…why aren't you guys talking to me?" I asked, bewildered.

Edward reached out and cupped my face in his hands and gave me a kiss. I knew it was meant to be a comforting gesture, but it really wasn't helping me out right now.

When he released my face, I pulled away, then spoke to no one in particular. "You guys are being all creepy-still and won't talk…God, somebody _please_ tell me what happened," I pleaded.

Edward grabbed my hand and pulled me into his side when Carlisle started to recount everything that had happened after he had showed me a picture.

Marie stalking up to him.

Marie grabbing a fistful of his hair.

Marie screaming in his face.

Marie taking the pictures from him.

Marie demanding a lighter from Emmett.

Marie yelling at him when he didn't have one on hand.

Marie getting hostile with Rosalie.

Marie calling Edward a liar.

Marie yelling at Edward as he went to wrap his arm around her and pick her up to keep her from running away.

Marie fighting against Edward and kicking him.

Marie crumpling the photos in her fists.

Marie screaming insults and profanities and her hatred for my vampire family.

Marie crying and turning her assaulting kicks on Carlisle.

Marie insulting Carlisle.

Marie threatening to burn the mansion down.

Marie telling them -

I gasped. "What did she say?" was my panicked whisper as I interrupted Carlisle.

**Doll, I fucking love you.**

_What did you tell them?_

**You know I'm not a goddamn liar, so I told the Doc what he wanted to know so he would shut the fuck up about it already.**

_What? Marie…oh my God…no..._

**S'not so bad, darling.**

Carlisle's voice faded in, "…sexual torture, forced sodomy, an-"

"Oh my _God_!" I yelled out, slamming my hands over my ears, and completely interrupting Marie's placating excuses and Carlisle's explanations to me. Again.

Almost as a reflex reaction, I got out of Edwards hold and stood on my own, off to the side. I didn't want to be touched. At all. And now, I was suddenly _even more_ aware of everyone's eyes on me.

I was panicking and disgusted. I never wanted anyone to know those things about me, especially my Edward. Besides, these past events weren't anyone's business. There was just no point in anyone knowing about it.

I could tell by the look on Edward's face that he didn't like not be within arm's reach of me, as he began moving closer to me.

But I recoiled before firmly telling him, "No."

I didn't want to be touched right now. Not even by him.

Edward stopped in his tracks, looking crestfallen. I started to feel Jasper's presence flowing through my tensing muscles then, forcing them to relax, as I started to calm my breathing.

"Bella, it's going to be alright," Edward told me in his soothing velvety voice.

_No. It's not._

I wanted to be alone. I wanted everyone's eyes off of me. I clenched my eyes shut for a minute, before I pried them back open, and stared down at the floor, so that I wouldn't have to see seven pairs of gold eyes burning a hole through me as I lied to them.

"She's lying…" I brokenly whispered, before I walked out of the room, not making eye contact with anyone.

I headed up the stairs in a daze, holding on to the railing on my way to the room that Edward and I would share from now on. I noticed that I was starting to cry again as I saw a tear drop fall from my cheek and splatter on the hardwood floor in the hallway on the third floor of this ridiculously large mansion. The fact that I was starting to cry angered me. I didn't want to cry.

When I entered my new bedroom, I walked into the adjoined bathroom and took care of that problem. After I blew my nose and washed my face, I walked back out to the bedroom.

It was then that I took in the new addition to the large room. There was a monstrosity planted right in the middle of the room that I recognized as a king size canopy bed. With four large bed posts on each corner and a canopy fixture set on top of the long bed posts. There was a large, comfortable looking blanket on the bed with dozens of pillows decorating the gold comforter they laid on. My eyes traveled down the comforter and noticed that my dvds, cds, and Nintendo DS were laying on the bed, waiting for me to put them where they belonged.

I numbly walked to the foot of the bed and reached for my video game, deciding to just put that in the nightstand drawer for now. I would put it downstairs for permanent placement later, with the guys' Playstation 3 and Wii systems, but I didn't want to go back down there right now.

I noticed Edward then, standing in the doorway to our room, watching my slow, stiff movements with concern. I chose to ignore him for now, remembering that I was upset with him. He had lied to me. My bruised heart started to break a little at his new betrayal.

I was at the foot of the bed again, and started to gather up some dvds into my arms. I decided that I was going to put these on the shelf below the flat screen TV hanging from the wall. Edward walked into the room then, helping me by gathering some of the dvds into his large hands, then we proceeded to walk over to the shelf together in silence. It wasn't until they were all up there, and I started to alphabetize them, that he spoke.

"Sweetheart, you know that I love you…" he said in a comforting gesture. "Just because we know certain things now that we didn't know before, doesn't mean anything is going to change. You know that, right love?"

He thought that I was upset and being quiet because I was fearing a rejection from him? Because of what he knew of me now? No…that's not why I was being aloof right now. Somewhere in the back of mind I knew that with the Cullen's knowledge of my disorder, they would soon find out the reasons for this problem.

I was putting the 'I Love You Man' dvd in between my 'I Am Legend' and 'I Now Pronounce You Chuck And Larry' dvds, when I decided to correct his assumption of why I was upset.

After all, rebuilding trust requires communication, right?

"Edward…" I started, keeping my worn out voice soft and calm. I didn't want to fight, or raise my voice…I wanted to have a mature, civil discussion about this. "We are supposed to be trying to heal our relationship and rebuild the trust, right?"

I glanced over to him at my side to see his reaction, before I turned my attention back to organizing my movies. He looked slightly confused, but nodded anyway.

"Well then, _why_ did you go and pull a stunt like this? You lied," I pointed out before placing 'Silent Hill' on the shelf.

"Bella, it was for the best," he defended. "You have to see that I did it for your benefit," he said before I interrupted him with a sharp look that clearly said, 'where have I heard that before?'. It stopped him short, he clearly interpreted my look well. Then he looked ashamed and whispered, "I'm sorry…" while looking into my eyes.

I looked away from those beautiful eyes, maintaining my refusal to be dazzled out of this conversation. I turned back to my distracting project that I was now calling: Alphabetize My Awesome Movie Collection, finding that, for some reason, working with my hands right now was keeping me grounded.

I slipped my three 'Underworld' dvds onto the shelf, as I spoke again. "You haven't been back for more than five days Edward, and already, you're fucking this up again," I said, getting angry, but then sighed, and looked at him apologetically. I didn't want to get mad, and hadn't meant to let that expletive slip out.

He was quiet as I finished up with the last few of my dvd collection.

I continued after a minute of silence, glad that he wasn't trying to make up any lame excuses for his actions. Calmly, I spoke again, "You promised to destroy those pictures, Edward, but you didn't. I mean, yeah…I totally get _why_ you didn't destroy them," I said, now turning to face him and look into his eyes. "But…honey, you should have told me your intentions and reasoning, instead of keeping them from me until the last minute," I explained.

He nodded with a pained, apologetic, and insecure look on his face. I saw his arms twitch then, as if he was restraining himself from reaching out to me, not knowing how his embrace would be received.

I shook my head a little and looked back up into his face. I didn't want him to think I would reject him again, like I had done downstairs. I sighed and reached out for his hand, which he took quickly. His large hand wrapped firmly around my own.

"C'mere…" I muttered, leading him over to the bed.

He trailed behind me, and I let go of his hand to hop up on the big bed. I quickly flipped around and got on all fours to crawl up to the top of this huge, comfy bed that I was quickly beginning to fall in love with. I was headed for those pretty pillows, and when I finally turned around and sat down, I propped myself up against them, and leaned back against the large headboard. I looked up and saw Edward still standing where I had left him at the foot of the bed. It hurt me that he looked so unsure about this. I should have never recoiled away from him downstairs.

I reached my arms out and repeated softly, "C'mere, Edward…"

Apparently, that was the only invitation he needed, because he was by my side on the bed in a flash. I chuckled a little at his eagerness. His face was inches from mine, so I reached out a tentative finger and traced it lightly on the skin below his left golden eye.

"I'm sorry, my Bella," he whispered before kissing me softly.

When he pulled back, he gathered up a few strands of my hair and held it up to his face. I could tell he was smelling it when he closed his eyes and a small smile played on his lips. When he opened his eyes again to look at me, that smile was gone and his eyes were serious…and sad again.

"I'm sorry," he repeated those words in a steady tone now, with conviction.

I bit my lip and nodded, believing his remorse, then wrapped my arm around his broad shoulders and brought his head down to my chest. I started lightly running my fingers through his beautiful, wild hair, realizing that our usual position was reversed right now, because he was the one needing reassurance.

Reassurance that I wouldn't reject his embrace again.

Reassurance in my love for him.

Reassurance in our relationship.

I laid there, getting comfortable and kept up my lazy pace of my fingers through Edwards hair. After a few minutes of silence, Edward spoke up quietly. He talked about his love for me, then continued on, explaining his acceptance of me…_all of me_.

I knew he was talking about my personalities, and also, the reasons for them existing. Everything that had happened to me, didn't change his image of me. He kept repeating that I was 'his sweet, precious Bella and always will be'.

I found myself relaxing from the hold of his arm around my waist and his soft, mesmerizing voice lilting in my ears, and my mood brightened a little.

**See, doll, what'd I tell ya? S'all gonna be okay…** she said.

Then, out of nowhere, her voice started to sing what I recognized as a song from when I was growing up, called 'Don't Worry, Be Happy'.

**Don't worry….no, no, no, don't worry**

**Be happy. Yeah…**

**Don't worry be happy, now…**

_Oh. My God…_

I heard her giggles before she starting up again, adding in her own little phrases.

**Here's a lil song I wrote**

**Mmmm yeah, I'm gonna sing it note for note, doll**

**Don't you worry…**

**Nu-uh, doll, don't worry…**

**Just be happy…**

**Don't worry, be happy now!** she sang brightly.

When she started whistling, I had to stop her.

**Doo, doo, doo, doo, doodooodooooooo….**

_Okay! Okay, I'll be happy_ I thought with a smile, still running my fingers through Edward's hair.

"…there's nothing you could ever do to change that, baby…" I heard Edward's hushed voice fade back into my awareness, before I heard Marie's remorseful one in my head.

**You still mad at me?**

_No…_

**Welllllll, my Bellllll…that's fuckawesome news.**

"Ok?" I heard Edward's voice say. "I love you. So much."

"I love you, too," I responded before telling him that I wanted to take a shower.

He let me get up and told me that he would take my Nintendo DS downstairs for me while I got out some pajamas to wear to bed. After I picked out one of Edward's white wife beater undershirts and my black pajama shorts with little white stars on them, I went into the bathroom for my shower.

I was in the shower, enjoying the water's warmth and my fingers massaging the shampoo into my scalp, when I heard that little voice that I would know anywhere. It shocked me so much, that I froze my hands and just stood there, staring blankly at the tiled wall.

**I like him…** her small voice whispered to me.

It wasn't until I started to feel the burn in my eye from shampoo dripping into it, that I realized I had been standing still for more than a few seconds. I squinted my eyes against the burn and hurriedly rinsed my hair, then let the shower spray pound down on my face for a minute. After the burn finally went away, with the help of the shower spray and a few of my own tears, I decided to experiment a little.

_Isabella?_ I thought very, _very_ hesitantly.

**Hi Bella…** she whispered back.

Holy shit.

**Wanna play with him…** her soft, child-like voice informed me.

I didn't respond, instead I fixed my mind onto the task at hand.

I grabbed my scrubby, squirted some body wash onto it, and hurried through the rest of my shower. When I got out of the shower, I wrapped a very soft towel around my body and started to dry my hair with another. Once my hair wasn't dripping anymore, I grabbed my purple toothbrush and lathered it up with some toothpaste. While I was brushing my pearly whites, I contemplated this whole Isabella situation.

No matter what I thought, it always came back to the fact that the Cullens already knew about the possibility of her, and when it came down to it, there wasn't anything I could do about it. If she wanted to come out, then she would. And I'm guessing that she does, since she…'wants to play with him'.

I sighed, worried about Edward's reaction, but resolved myself to my fate by the fact that I was helpless in the situation. I repeated his reassuring words in my head about his acceptance of _all of me,_ and began getting dressed.

When I was slipping my white cotton panties on, there was a knock on the door. I jumped a little, surprised by the sudden noise interrupting my reverie.

"Yeah?" I called out.

"What are you doing?" Edward's voice responded.

"Getting dressed," I answered, pulling my panties the rest of the way up my legs.

"Bella, are you alright?" he asked, sounding unsure.

"Yeah," I assured him, picking up my star crossed pajama shorts and starting to slip them on as well.

_Why wouldn't I be?_

**Um. 'Cause you're not.**

_Yes, I am._

**No, you're freaking out over my new friend** she knowingly argued.

_Marie, not now…_

**Where the fuck has Isabella been all this time?**

_I. Don't. Know._

"Okay, baby…your heart rate just spiked really high there for a second….alright," he hesitated. "Do you want to watch a movie, or something when you come to bed?" he hedged.

"Sure, go ahead and pick one. I'll be out in a second," I told him while I slipped his wife beater shirt over my head.

I grabbed my hair brush off the counter then, and opened the bathroom door to find him still standing there, leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed over his chest. I smiled up at him and he smiled back, then held out his hand for my hair brush. I handed it over and then walked over to the bed...the really big, comfy bed, that was, for some reason, kind of tall.

I looked down and noticed that it was on bed risers.

_Yeah…as if it didn't look big enough already. _

**Looks fun to play on** Marie notified me.

_If you say so…_

I didn't want to know what she meant by 'play'.

Putting my hands on the edge of the bed, I jumped a little, and leaned my waist onto the bed, then started pulling myself up the rest of the way. I heard Edward's chuckle when I was in a position that had my ass stuck in the air as I brought my knees up to help me crawl onto this freakin monstrosity.

_Of course he would just stand there and watch the show, instead of helping me._

**He thinks our ass is sexy…**

_Probably._

**He probably wants to fucking bite it, or something.**

I blushed at our internal conversation and got settled onto the bed, now that I was finally on it. I turned around to find Edward standing off to the side with a big grin on his face, staring at me adoringly.

"In the morning we're taking the bed risers off, Edward," I tried to say seriously, but it was pretty clear I was fighting my own smile while I blushed.

He chuckled again, then agreed. "Yes, dear," he said all mockingly-domestic like.

I nodded, glad that I wouldn't have to embarrass myself by doing that every night. "Which movie are we watching?"

He walked over to the dvd collection that was now below the flat screen TV hanging from the wall. "What would you like to watch?"

"Um…War of the Worlds," I decided, and he immediately grabbed that one.

While he was putting it in the dvd player, I got underneath the blankets, and soon he joined me. He got under the covers, dressed in pajamas as well, and pulled me onto his lap while he sat up, leaning against the headboard.

While we watched Tom Cruise and Dakota Fanning's acting skills, he brushed my hair and ran his cool fingers up and down my arms. His actions were lulling me to sleep and my eyes were getting harder and harder to keep open with each passing stroke of the brush through my hair, or his fingers traveling lightly along my bare arm, leaving goose bumps in their wake.

Once he was satisfied that my hair was dry, he put the brush down on the nightstand and scooted down the bed a little bit, allowing him to lay down. I was still sitting on top of him, so I turned around to face him, and straddled his hips.

"C'mere baby," he said as he reached for me, then enveloped me in his arms as I layed down on his chest.

I rested my head on top of his shoulder, enjoying the feel of his soft cotton shirt against my cheek. He turned the TV down so that it was barely audible anymore, but still kept the movie playing. I felt his kiss on my forehead right after I finally let my eyes fall closed.

EPOV

Bella fell asleep surprisingly fast, for which I was thankful. Today had been another hard day, and I could see her exhaustion written all over her feautres when I came up to our bedroom earlier after she had quickly walked off, avoiding the situation and leaving seven worried vampires behind, all of whom were wondering about her well-being. When I came up here, she was moving slowly, almost like her mind was in a fog, trying to put her dvds away.

I felt guilty when she brought up those fucking pictures in a conversation. I knew I should have told her what I was planning on doing, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I guess a part of me was hoping that she would place all the blame on Carlisle, since it was _his_ idea, but I knew that was farfetched. I was just as involved in what had happened, and she wasn't going to let me get away with it.

But, as bad as the subject that she had brought up made me feel, I'm also glad that she brought it up. It let me know that our line of communication was still open, and she let me know that she understood _why_ I did what I did. She was just upset about being lied to again by me. And I couldn't blame her for feeling that way. It was a shitty thing to do, especially after my promise to her of always being honest with her from now on.

Still, she forgave me, and I was both grateful and little bewildered, because I knew that I didn't deserve her love or forgiveness. I've put her through so much turmoil and pain, but she still chooses to be with me and love me, regardless.

From now on, I will _always_ be honest with her. No matter what the situation. Especially if it has to do with her therapy, because she has a right to know about these things.

The credits to the movie we had been watching were rolling when my Bella started to stir against me. I tightened my hold on her a little and started lightly running my fingers along her spine.

Hoping she would stay asleep. I glanced at the clock and saw that it was just after 2AM.

She moaned sleepily and I shushed her. Her warm little hand that was on my chest, began to curl up into a tiny fist. I took that hand in mine, and started to gently pry her fingers apart. I didn't want her fingernails biting into the skin of her palm while she slept. Once it lay flat on my chest again, she breathed out a restless sigh.

Six minutes later, Bella's eyes flashed opened. She blinked a few times before trying to sit up. I didn't stop her, or try to keep her held to me. Now that she was awake enough to open her eyes, she might need to use the bathroom, or just want to switch positions. When she was sitting up straight, and still didn't speak or make a move to get off of me, I put my hands on her hips and started to soothingly rub the muscles on her upper thighs, thinking that it was possible that those muscles might be cramping up from staying in her sleeping position for so long. At my cool hand's touch on the soft bare skin of her legs, she turned her gaze down to me. Her bleary eyes met mine and I smiled.

"Hey, baby..." I softly greeted her.

She gave me a very small smile and held my gaze, then bit her bottom lip. A second after her teeth caught her lip, she slightly sucked it into her mouth. A few seconds later, she switched to her top lip, bringing it slightly into her mouth and using her bottom lip to hold it in place. Then she switched back to her bottom lip.

I looked away from her intense stare to watch her lips, wondering when she had picked up this particular habit. I've seen her bite her lip a million times before, but...never suck on them. The movement started to pick up speed a little, and I saw her jaw moving to accomodate her top lip when she would switch to that one from her bottom one.

I stopped my massaging hand's movements on her thighs, and looked back into her eyes, suddenly wary that this wasn't Bella. She hadn't spoken up yet, and this new lip sucking thing was unnerving me. There wasn't anything wrong with it, it was just...she had never done that before. Her subtle action put my cautious mind on alert.

She had only been doing that for about a minute, before she stopped and kept her sleepy, but intent stare on me. I took my hand that was resting on her right thigh, and reached up to move some of the hair that had fallen into her face. She took her stare off of my face and moved it to register the movement of my hand. And I swear I saw her minutely flinch away from it. I paused my hand midair, and was positive now that this was not my Bella. And it wasn't Marie, because she would have made some sort of smartass comment by now. Okay, that would leave Isabella....five year old Isabella.

_Ummm..._

I lowered my hand, and when her eyes met mine again, I decided to just go with the flow, and smiled softly up at her. She mirrored it with her own small smile. And then she blushed, suddenly being shy.

_Adorable_.

I watched as she lifted her right hand, then very slowly, reached for my face. She lightly traced her fingertips across my hard flesh with a look of wonder in her eyes. I watched her face while she carefully watched her own fingers, as they moved across my skin and stopped just below my left eye. Her gaze moved fractionally from those fingertips to my gold eyes, and kept her wonderous stare fixed there.

"Pretty..." she whispered so softly, I wouldn't have heard her if not for my vampire senses.

Then her soft touch went into my hair, feeling the texture of it. I kept my eyes on her face, but stayed quiet and still while she continued her explorations. She watched her own hand in my hair, then her gaze went back to my eyes. I was wary that her now wide-awake eyes seemed guarded all of a sudden, as her fingers started to very hesitantly twirl a few strands of my hair between her fingers. After a few seconds, her gaze softened and I saw her smile, apparently happy that I wasn't going to tell her she couldn't play with my hair. Her fingers weren't hesitant in my hair anymore, and when she was satified there, her eyes followed as her fingers lightly trailed down my shoulders, to my chest, and down a little further to my stomach, stopping in front of her own body.

She looked back up into my eyes and pointed her finger at me, lightly touching my chest with one single digit. Then she spoke. And it fascinated me that it was in a voice so child-like and soft. It almost sounded like she had a stuffy nose, and it was an entire octave higher than Bella's. Her voice tone was definitely that of a child's.

Her pointed finger lay gently on my chest as she said, "You're mine," taking that same finger and pointing to her own chest as she pronounced the word 'mine'.

Sudden relief washed through me and I smiled at her. Nodding, I assured her "Yes I am, baby."

Her sudden, and unexpected statement of possessiveness made me extremely happy and warmed my heart. And I don't know why. Maybe it's just because her already apparent claim for me, meant that I didn't have to convince her to like me or of the fact that I loved her. She already liked me.

She smiled at my response and laid back down on my chest, snuggling her head tightly into the crook of my shoulder. I wrapped my arms around her and she lazily ran her fingertips across my exposed collarbone and throat for a while.

I looked at the clock and noticed an entire hour had passed. I knew she should still be asleep right now, so I kissed her forehead and started subtly rocking her from side to side.

"Go to sleep, Isabella," I instructed softly.

I heard her whispered, "Mine," before she stuck her thumb in her mouth and closed her eyes.

Three minutes later, she was fast asleep, and when I thought it wouldn't wake her up, I pulled that thumb out of her mouth and kept a hold of her hand, so that she wouldn't subconciously stick it back in or something. I found that I didn't mind the idea of Isabella sucking her thumb at bedtime to go to sleep, but it would need to come out shortly after. Keeping it in all night wouldn't be good for Bella's dental health.

I kept up the subtle rocking of Isabella's body with ease and spent the rest of the night hours pondering my realization of the fact that I tailor myself to fit Bella's needs. I turn off my ingrained instincts to bite into her supple flesh and suck her dry, only to ensure that I can be by her side. And with the different personalities becoming a factor, I find that when she is Marie and needs a boyfriend, friend, authority figure, confidant and someone who not only puts up with her attitude, but dishes right back out to her...I am exactly that. And with Isabella's needs...I'm guessing she's going to need a best friend, confidant and authority figure. I smiled, knowing that I can be all of those things for her with no problem at all.

And something else that I'm realizing now is that I am _happy_ to do it. I'm actually enjoying all these different aspects of her. I thought her mind was interesting before because it was closed off to me and I could never guess what she was going to do, but now it's just down right fucking fascinating. I get to know all the facets of every personality that she's got in her beautiful mind, and I love that they all have that one thing in common...Bella's strong and unique love for me.

They are all bonded to me through her main point of view of me and our relationship. Marie is definitely sexually attracted to me and is always looking for my approval. It's very apparent that she wants to please me. Isabella will most definitely be the possessive one of the bunch. Her claim on me was the first thing out of her shy mouth. Even right now, her hand is clutching onto my shirt in her sleep. Granted, Bella does that sometimes too, but that's usually only right after she has a nightmare and she's holding onto me to keep herself grounded with reality.

Eventually her grip on my shirt loosened and the sun began to rise. Soon the bedroom was lit up by the cloudy sunlight outside. I stopped my rocking movements and just lay still, fixating my gaze on my sleeping beauty's face that was currently laying half on my shoulder, and half on my chest.

Her long eyelashes fanned across her cheekbones, which had a permanent light blush dusted across them. Her flawless cream complection skin was glowing in the subtle sunlight of the room. My eyes eventually landed on her sweet, rosy lips that were pouted out right now as she slowly drew deep breaths in and out through them.

She is perfect.

After a while more, Bella's eyelids started to flutter, and her heart rate increased a bit, indicating that she was waking up. I smiled, anticipating looking into her chocolate eyes again. When they finally opened a little, I gave her nose an Eskimo kiss, knowing how much she loved those. She giggled a little and started to stretch.

"Mornin..." she said, her voice thick with sleep.

"Good morning, beautiful," I responded with a smile.

She smiled back before starting to remove her body from mine, stating that she had to use the bathroom. When she came back into the room a minute later, she was sleepily rubbing at her eyes. She started coming back over to the bed when her stomach gave a small growl.

"I'm hungry," she informed me, then yawned.

I nodded. "Okay, what would you like for breakfast?" I asked, getting up from my spot on the bed, now that I knew she wouldn't want to go back to sleep.

She grabbed the hairbrush off of the nightstand. "Ummm...." she thought for a second before replying, "Eggs and toast, please."

"Sure, sweetheart," I said while walking towards the door. "I'll come get you when it's done."

She nodded at me as I left the room.

I was downstairs in the kitchen, telling my family about Isabella's appearance last night, when I started making Bella's breakfast. I was scrambling two eggs for Bella, making sure to add cheese, just the way she liked, and I had just popped a slice of bread in the toaster when I heard sudden loud music blare out from my stereo speakers upstairs. I immediately knew that Bella was playing around with my stereo system and smiled, knowing that she felt comfortable enough to treat my belongings as her own. But when I heard her voice start to sing along with the lyrics of the song, I knew it was Marie.

I turned towards my family then, who were looking in the direction of the stairs with amused but confused expressions on their faces, and let them know that Marie would be coming down for breakfast, instead of Bella.

They nodded and I asked Esme to finish up the food and get it on a plate for her, while I went to bring Marie downstairs for her breakfast. She happily obliged, always ready to do some kind of motherly duty, and I went to make my way up the stairs. I passed by a giggling Alice and looked at her, wondering what she wasn't telling me when I realized that she was blocking her thoughts.

"You'll see," she told me with a smile on her face.

"Ok..." I responded hesitantly, but shrugged it off and continued up the stairs to get Marie.

What I saw when I got up to our bedroom though, had a huge grin splitting across my face.

Pink's song, 'U + Ur Hand' was blasting through my stereo speakers, but the fact that I don't really like that song didn't seem to matter at the moment, because there was Marie...her pajama shorts gone, and tossed absently on the floor. She was dressed in only my white wife beater undershirt and a pair of little white cotton panties. Her wild hair that framed her face was left unbrushed because she was currently using that hair brush as a microphone prop. She was jumping on top of her new king size bed, holding the handle of her hair brush up to her mouth, shaking her ass and jumping all around the large surface, singing her little heart out.

She finally turned her jumps around, and started jumping over in my direction, and when she saw me, instead of getting embarrassed, a beaming smile lit up her beautiful face. The fact that I was watching her didn't seem to spoil her fun at all, because she continued on until the end of the song. When it was over, I turned the volume of my stereo down, and she started giggling.

"Too fucking loud?" she asked.

"A bit," I said, laughing lightly and turned back to her.

She was still standing half naked on the bed, flushed and a little breathless, but had that beautiful smile lighting up her glowing face. She bit her lip. "Edward I'm so fucking hungry. Did you make me my mmm-mmm yummy cheese eggs?" she asked hopefully.

"Sure did, sweetheart," I responded before picking up her pajama bottoms off the floor. She would not be going downstairs dressed in only my shirt and some panties. I tossed them to her, "Here, put these back on," I said while catching another glimpse of her pretty little ass, outlined by that flimsy piece of practically see-through cotton.

"Yes, sir," she said giving me a mock salute with a smile on her face. I rolled my eyes and she bounced a little more in place before deciding to put her shorts back on. After she slipped them on, she asked, "Breakfast?" while looking into my eyes.

"Mm-hmm," I nodded.

"Piggy back ride!" she suggested, excitement lighting up her eyes when she started bouncing again.

_Wow. How'd she get so much energy first thing in the morning?_

I laughed at her eagerness, glad that she was in a good mood after last night and walked over to the bed. Her excited, bouncing form met me at the edge, and she hopped onto my back without hesitation.

"Giddyup, Edward!" she said in a southern accent that would rival Jasper's, then wrapped her arms around my neck and planted a warm kiss to the back of my head.

I started walking towards the steps, when she informed me that 'faster is funner', so I picked up my pace to jog down all the steps. Her peals of giggling laughter echoed off the walls in the stairway and I found myself laughing along with her. Marie's moods seemed to affect the atmosphere...literally. When she's upset, the tension in the air is thick, but when she's happy, you can't help but to smile along with her.

We buzzed past everyone, Marie flashing them all her smile, and when we reached the dining room, I sat her back down on her feet. But she shook her head and said that she wanted to eat in the kitchen. I didn't see anything wrong with that, so we strolled into the kitchen, where Marie proceeded to hop up onto the counter, and lazily kicked her feet out, the motion very child-like. Her kicks would make the light _thump-thump_ sound every time her feet padded back against the cabinets below her.

I handed her the plate of food and a glass of chocolate milk. She put the milk down beside her, and sat the plate in her lap, taking a stab of her eggs. She smiled at me and hummed, letting me know that she enjoyed the taste. I smiled back at her adoringly.

Alice came into the kitchen then. "Hey, Marie," Alice tentatively greeted.

I could tell by her thoughts that she was cautious from what she had seen of Marie last night. She didn't know that Marie, apparently, got over things quickly, and changed moods often.

"Hi, Ali!" Marie smiled at her, then took a bite out of her toast.

Alice smiled back then, encouraged by Marie's enlightened mood. "What are you guys gonna do today?"

I shrugged before Marie answered, "Edward's gonna get me a new box," she said brightly.

_Oh yeah..._

I had forgotten that I offered to buy her a new one after taking away her tin box full of marijuana. Marie looked at me for confirmation and I nodded at her.

"I get a wicked new box, and it's gonna be all _mine_," she said with a smile. "Not my Bell's or Isabella's....just mine," she explained further with a slight nod.

"Sounds fun," Alice commented.

"It is. Yeah...shit, getting stuff that's just mine is always fun, Ali. It's always my fucking dirty little secret, ya know? From my pretty Bell, I mean. She doesn't have to know about fucking _everything_, ya know?"

She nodded, understanding how important personal possesions must be to Marie. She's not even her own person, so she's always desperate to mark things, such as a tin box, as her own.

Her hand reached out towards her drink then, and she accidently knocked it over, sending half a glass full of milk across the counter and dripping onto the floor. I heard her gasp as I quickly grabbed some paper towels to clean up the mess. It only took me a couple of seconds to get everything back in order and grab Marie another small glass of milk, but when I went to hand it to her, I looked up and froze when I saw her face.

She was all wide-eyed, her demeanor completely different from just a minute ago. Her feet had stopped their rhythmic kicking against the cabinets below, and she was pressing herself hard up against the wall behind her back. Her plate of food lay forgotten in her lap. Her body's posture was tense and her heart rate started picking up. I could smell adrenaline and knew then, that she was afraid.

_Okay...what...what the hell?_

Her fearful eyes pierced right through me. Was she afraid of...of _me_?

I set the glass of milk that I had in my hands, down on the counter.

"What is it?" I whispered to her, hoping with all of my being that she didn't say she was scared of me.

_God, what had happened?_

Alice stayed still as stone, watching our exchange.

She softly whispered back, "Am I in trouble?" Her whisper was almost _too_ soft.

_Oh, Isabella..._

I shook my head quickly, trying to reassure her that she wasn't in trouble for spilling some milk. It was a fucking accident. And that train of thought led me back to the fact that she was expecting some kind of punishment, almost bracing herself for it. That thought nearly enraged me...that she was used to abuse, and was now on guard for it.

"No," I whispered back with a reassuring gaze, trying my best to reign in my newfound fury.

She watched me for a second more, seeming to be making sure that I was telling her the truth, before she started to relax her posture. I grabbed her glass of milk off the counter again and placed it by her. She carefully reached for her fork from the plate that was on her lap, and slowly put some eggs on it. When she took a bite, I noticed that the sweet smell of her adrenaline hadn't went away with her tense posture.

She was still afraid.

That's when I noticed where her eyes were trained. She kept her wide staring eyes on Alice, and her small movements with eating were slow and calculated...almost cautious.

She didn't know Alice, so she was scared of her? Scared of strangers in general? Was it something specific about Alice?

I was getting ready to ask Alice to leave the room when Carlisle came in, fully aware that we weren't dealing with Marie anymore, and eager to meet Isabella. But when she saw Carlisle, she quickly put her plate off to the side on the counter, hopped down, and came over to me. She rushed to step behind me, keeping my body between her and them.

"Isabella," Carlisle said her name soothingly.

She peeked her head out from behind my shoulder and looked at Carlisle. He smiled at her, but she didn't smile back.

"Isabella, my name is Carlisle," he introduced.

She didn't respond, just stared at him.

"You're safe here, sweetheart, no one is going to hurt you. You don't have to be afraid," he assured her.

More silence and staring from Isabella.

I twisted my body around so that I could tuck her into my side and keep my arm around her waist to provide some comfort for her. She was clearly very scared right now.

She clutched onto a fistful of my shirt and never took her gaze off of Carlisle and Alice. I picked her up and sat her back down on the counter, but kept my body close, stepping in between her legs.

I knew from Carlisle's thoughts that he had a picture with him in his pocket. He wanted to see Isabella's reaction first hand, then closely examine the differences between Bella's and Marie's. I cupped her face in my hands, and she tore her gaze away from them to turn her eyes to look into mine.

She instantly relaxed and smiled at me, blushing a little, then pointing to my chest, like she had last night, and whispered, "Mine."

I smiled and nodded. "Your's," I assured her softly.

As Carlisle watched our exchange, I decided to explain to Isabella about that picture. "Isabella, Carlisle wants to show you a picture. Can he do that? Is that okay with you, baby?"

She gave one more look in his direction, then turned her gaze back to me, before she nodded.

I removed my hands from her face then, needing to clear the counter around her from her breakfast dishes. I heard her whimper when I moved away from her and towards the sink, so I looked back in her direction to see what was wrong.

She was watching me intently, the longing look on her face clearly saying that she wanted me back by her side.

_Hmm, clingy..._

I hurried back over to her and she reached out for my hand, then turned to face Carlisle just as he was digging in his pocket for the picture. He walked closer to the counter to set it down beside her, but with every step he took toward her, she would inch herself in the opposite direction, closer to me. Eventually she was pressed firmly against my side, her head on my shoulder, and I had my arm wrapped around her.

He placed the picture down beside her and she turned her head down to look at it. After being silent for a second, she giggled, surprising us all, and pointed to the image of a young Bella.

She blushed. "That's me," she said with a smile. "See? I got my pretty pink swimmy suit on," her incredibly soft voice pointed out before she looked back up at Carlisle.

He smiled at her, and she tightened her grip on my shirt when he reached his hand out in her direction to point at something on the picture.

He touched the image of that Jim motherfucker and carefully asked, "Who is this, Isabella?"

She looked away from his face and back down to the picture to see who he was talking about.

I tensed, preparing myself for the dramatics of her reaction. I kept my gaze on her face, carefully reading it for any signs of distress. I was prepared for any kind of violent or dramatic event that was sure to come any minute now.

I was not, however, prepared for her answer.

"That's daddy," the child-like voice answered.

* * *

A/N:

I spent like, seven fucking hours on this chapter because I couldn't figure out how to introduce Isabella into the story. But I'm pretty happy with the finished product. Let me know your thoughts :)

xoxo


	15. Needs

A/N:

OK, sweets -- Listen up...

From now on, this TwiFic will have **prejudice terms** and **racial slurs** peppered throughout the entire story.

The fact that Bella's 5yr old alternate, Isabella, is very prejudice and also, very casual about it, is a major plotline and cannot be changed.

Is that cool with you?

Kay, there's your warning...

Back to story time, kids! ENJOY :)

* * *

EPOV

_Isabella thinks this asshole is her father?_

Carlisle excused himself for a moment, telling Isabella that he would be right back. I knew he was going upstairs to get one of Bella's picture albums to show Isabella who her real father is. What would she say? Would she even recognize Charlie?

Isabella started sucking on her bottom lip and kept her grip on my shirt, making sure I stayed near her. She was eyeing Alice warily.

_Should I try to talk to her?_ Alice thought to me.

I nodded.

"Hi, Isabella," Alice greeted.

Isabella waved a little at her before hiding her face in my shoulder and blushing.

I chuckled and started rubbing her back softly. It was endearing how shy she actually was. Soon, her head lifted from it's hiding spot at the crook of my shoulder and she turned it to look up at me.

"Can I have a pop?" she asked sweetly.

"Soda?" I clarified, and turned to make my way over to the fridge, but she shook her head.

"Huh-uh…a freezie pop. Can I have one? Pretty please?"

I shook my head regretfully, "We don't have any."

She furrowed her brow and seemed to be thinking for a second, before trying again and asking, "Do you got any lollies?"

I smiled at her. "What's a lolly, Isabella?"

She smiled. "You know, um…candy on a stick that you suck on. And sometimes there's yummy stuff in the middle of 'em. Like gum or chocolate," she explained.

"Oh…no, we don't have any lollipops either," I informed her.

She suddenly looked crestfallen and frowned.

I traced my finger along her pouting bottom lip and apologized softly. "Sorry, baby…"

She looked at me anxiously and started to suck on her bottom lip again, before switching to her top one, then repeating the process. After a few seconds, she stopped and sighed restlessly, then popped her thumb in her mouth. Once it was in her mouth, I noticed that the upset look on her face started to melt away.

I warred with myself for a minute before realizing that I really didn't want that thumb in her mouth. It's a bad habit, plus I had decided last night that it was fine for bedtime…but that's it.

"Isabella, stop that," I lightly scolded her before I wrapped my hand around her wrist and gently pulled her hand away from her mouth. I kissed her palm and kept her hand in one of mine to prevent anymore thumb sucking this morning.

I didn't expect her to be instantly pouty and restless again, but she was. Her feet kicked out lazily and padded back onto the cabinets below her and she started sucking on those lips again, making a whining sound in the back of her throat the whole time.

She looked at me longingly and I asked, "What's wrong?"

She didn't answer though, because Carlisle came back into the kitchen with Bella's white childhood picture album. He put the album down at her side and, as predicted, she inched closer to me again, as he approached her side. This time though, instead of backing away, he stayed nearby to show her the album and to get her to begin being comfortable in his presence.

When he opened the album, it flipped to a page with Charlie's picture on it. Isabella's eyes were glued to all the pictures, not focusing on any particular one, so Carlisle pointed to an old picture of Charlie Swan from about ten years ago.

"Isabella, who's this?" he asked, making sure to always keep his voice soft and soothing due to her apparent nervousness around him.

"Him?" she checked, pointing to the same picture.

"Yes, him…" Carlisle confirmed.

She removed her finger and gaze from the glossy paper and answered, "That's the bad man."

_What?_

Confused by her answer, I asked her before Carlisle could, "What makes him a 'bad man', sweetheart?"

"He's the dirty kike that fucked my mommy," her soft voice informed us matter-of-factly.

"What?" Carlisle breathed out, a little shocked and sharing my sentiment of not liking those words coming from her mouth.

Profanity and racial slurs are not going to be acceptable at all coming from Isabella…especially the racist crap.

She started playing with the hem of my shirt before she gave a delicate shrug and explained further in that child-like voice I was beginning to adore. "Um, Daddy says that it's that kike's fault that I'm evil b'cuz when he fucked my mommy, he put me in her tummy. And Mommy was sad b'cuz she didn't want an evil baby like me, but the bad man in the picture made her keep me b'cuz he didn't want me either. B'cuz I'm a dirty Jew baby and that's why Daddy has to hurt me…so he can get rid of my bad stuff for me so I can be pure for my mommy so that she'll want to keep me." She shrugged again and scrunched up her nose a bit before adding, "But I dunno if she will tho', b'cuz I'm a freaky half-breed kike…no better than those faggots and niggers," she finished, shaking her head a little, then let go of the piece of my shirt that she had been twisting around on her finger.

We were quiet, not really knowing how to respond to that brain-washing bullshit that Isabella had obviously been fed time and time again, if she's knows it by heart and gave it as an explanation to describe her biological father.

When she looked back up at us, she sighed. "I'm thirsty…do you got any juice boxes?" she asked hopefully.

"No, but we have juice…I'll put some in a glass for you," Alice said, walking over to the cabinets by the refrigerator.

I looked at Isabella evenly, wanting to make this new language rule clear to her. "Isabella, I don't want to hear those words come out of your mouth anymore…alright?" I tried to keep my voice light, but I knew it had come out sounding stern, and I inwardly cringed. I didn't want her to think she was in trouble, because she wasn't.

She looked up at my tone of voice and asked with her confused face inches from mine, "What words?"

I sighed, not wanting to repeat any of those terms, but she was clearly confused, not knowing what she had done wrong. "'Kike', 'Faggot', and 'Nigger'," I clarified.

She tilted her head to the side and furrowed her brow. "How come?" she asked softly.

"Because they are bad," I answered, deciding to keep my explanation simple and plain for her.

I was trying to keep my mind wrapped around the fact that she was in a five year old's frame of mind. She didn't know any better and these words were probably apart of Bella's daily vocabulary when she was a child, living with Jim and constantly being in his environment. And that is where these awful phrases are coming from now…through Isabella. It will probably be apart of Isabella's daily vocabulary.

_Fucking hell. _

I really didn't want a reason to be firm with Isabella this early in our relationship, but it looks like I'm not going to have a choice.

_Damn it._

"They bad and ucky words?" she asked hesitantly.

I nodded. "Mmm-hmmm," I hummed as a response, still looking into her confused gaze.

"Naughty…?" she asked slowly.

"Yes, Isabella. All of those things…bad, ucky and naughty," I clarified further for her, getting tired of the word play and wanting this conversation to be over. I was getting angry.

She must have realized that from my expression and curt tone of voice because then her bottom lip pouted out and her eyes started to water. The salty smell sickened me because I knew it was associated with my Bella crying.

"Am I in trouble?" she asked for the second time this morning.

I sighed and softened my gaze before saying, "Not this time…" letting her know that I won't put up with that type of language in the future.

She nodded and picked up the cup of juice that Alice put on the counter. After she took a few sips, I took the glass from her and kissed away the single tear that had fallen onto her cheek. I hated that she is upset right now, but at least now she knows what she did wrong, and the tear that I had just kissed away is a sign that she's remorseful about her language.

"Sorry," she whispered, confirming my thoughts.

"It's okay, baby," I assured her.

Carlisle picked up the album then, and notified us that he was going to go return it to it's place on Bella's bookshelf. Alice had left the room after getting Isabella a drink, so that left me alone with her in the kitchen.

"I think it's time to get you dressed, angel," I suggested.

She nodded and hopped down off of the counter, but didn't make a move towards exiting the kitchen.

"I'm hungry…" she said in a slight whiny tone.

"But you just ate, Isabella," I reminded her.

"Do you got any teddy crackers?" she asked.

I shook my head, not exactly sure what those were. "No, baby…" I responded.

"I want a pop, Edward," she said lightly.

"We don't have those, baby," I repeated.

"How come?" she asked.

"I don't know, maybe we can get some later," I said, knowing that I was going out today anyway, for Marie's new box.

"Can I go play outside?" she asked.

I looked down at her, still clad in only her pajamas. "Not dressed in that," I informed her, pointing out the thin shirt and tiny shorts she was wearing.

"Do you got any toys?" she asked.

"Not really…" I said, suddenly realizing that while Marie wanted a simple tin box, Isabella might require her own things…like, umm…I don't know, Barbie dolls or something.

"Do you got any-"

"Sweetheart, go get dressed," I interrupted her, knowing that my answer to her next question would likely be a 'no', as well.

Looks like I'm going to have to go shopping for Isabella.

"But…" she hesitated.

"Yes…?"

"Do you got any stuff to color with?" she asked.

I gave her a stern look. "Upstairs, Isabella. Go get dressed."

She pouted. "I want a lolly, Edward…" she said, then began sucking on her lips again, alternating them per her routine.

"Well, if you don't get dressed, then we can't go out to get any of those things," I pointed out.

"Where do I get dressed at?" she asked.

"Back up in our bedroom," I said before taking her hand and leading her towards the staircase.

She looked cautiously at the rest of my family as we passed by them in the living room, but kept up a normal pace. While we were climbing the last set of steps to the third floor, she spoke again.

"Edward, I got to go potty…" she informed me.

I nodded. "You can in a second, baby…there's a bathroom right next to our bedroom. Remember?"

She shook her head, silently telling me 'no', and followed me into our room. When she saw her king size bed, she must have completely forgotten about needing to use the restroom, because she ran straight for it. She was quick to climb on then, and without missing a beat, she stood up and started bouncing and jumping all around on the bed.

She seemed to be having fun, so I decided to let her jump for a minute, while I picked up some things from off the floor. She was giggling and twirling around, and after another minute, I reminded her that she had to use the bathroom and get dressed.

She didn't resist or stall at all, like I thought she might do, because she looked like she was having a lot of fun. I thought that maybe she wouldn't want to stop. After all, Marie had stalled this morning, and she had been doing the exact same thing.

But Isabella nodded right away and got down off the bed immediately, indicating that she had a very obedient nature. I hoped it was just her nature, and not fear…I didn't want her thinking that she would be in trouble for small, stupid things.

Isabella went into the bathroom and I started on the task of making the bed. The golden comforter had fallen onto the floor and the pillows were all in disarray while the sheets lay there, dull and crumpled. I guess that's what happens after a morning of jumping on the bed, though.

She came out of the bathroom a few seconds after I was done putting the bed back in order and asked, "Hey Edward, can we go now? I want to go get my new wicked box…"

I turned to face Marie, before I said, "I'll tell you what I told Isabella three times already - Get. Dressed."

She smirked. "Why? I look fucking sexy in this," she said before performing a little super-model twirl in front of me.

I smirked back. "We're not going shopping in pajamas, love."

"We could," she said wistfully, while walking by me in the direction of the closet.

"Get dressed," I repeated and slapped her ass lightly as she walked by me.

After she grabbed a pair of jeans and a thin black top, she walked back to the bathroom, winking at me before she closed the door. While she was in there, I took my own pajamas off and got dressed, slipping on some jeans and a simple white t-shirt.

Five minutes later, she came out of the bathroom dressed, her teeth and hair brushed, and walked over to the dresser, fishing for a pair of socks.

After she sank gracefully down to the floor and started to put them on her little pedicured feet, she asked, "Hey Edward, where's my fuckawesome bike? Is it still at Jake's?"

I watched as she grabbed a pair of sneakers and started to slip them on before I answered her, dreading her inevitable attitude on this subject.

"That motorcycle is still with Jacob and it's going to stay over there," I told her.

"Why?" she asked, starting to lace up her right shoe.

"Because you're not going to be riding it again."

Her face shot up at this declaration and she stared me down as she yelled out, "Why?"

"Because, Marie, motorcycles are not safe and you don't even have any protective gear. No helmet, or riding jacket -"

"So, we'll go get a fucking helmet then," she interrupted me, her voice still raised.

"No," I told her firmly.

She looked away from me then and finished tying her left shoe, her movements hurried and jerky. I heard her sniffle before I smelt the salt of her tears.

_Damn it…_

When she stood up, she stomped over to where I was sitting on the bed, and stopped when she was standing in between my legs. Her face, inches from mine, was flushed as she scowled at me, a few of those angry tears streaking down her soft cheeks.

I sighed but kept my hard exterior up, not willing to budge on this matter. I don't know what I was expecting her to say, but it certainly wasn't the words that came out of her mouth a second later.

"Why can't you take my Bell's books or fucking video game away? Why's it always gotta be my stuff?" she yelled in my face before a sob tore through her throat. After taking a deep breath, she continued in a thick, shaky voice as tears continued to pour out of her eyes. "Why can't you take away my Bell's books and use the excuse of the possibility of her getting another goddamn paper cut so it's 'not safe'. Or, hell…her DS game? Shit, she could get carpel tunnel from playing it too motherfucking much," she said then sniffled as another sob made it past her beautiful lips. "Why's it always gotta be my stuff? _My_ box, _my_ bike," she ranted before letting out another sob and crying for a minute before bringing her forearm up to her face and wiping the tears angrily off of her face. "It's not _fair_!" she screamed at me.

I felt fucking horrible. I had taken away her only possessions…sure, the bike isn't safe and not negotiable, but I didn't have to destroy her tin box. I could have just taken the marijuana out of it. There wasn't anything wrong with the tin box itself…it was just a stupid box, but it had obviously meant a lot to her.

I sighed.

_I am an asshole._

I reached out and enveloped her sobbing form into my arms. Once her chest was tucked tightly into mine, her head laying on my shoulder as large sobs wracked her small body, I started to rub her back…just trying to comfort her through her emotional withdraw from the things that she had become attached to, that I had to take away.

"Shhh…" I whispered in her ear as her arms tightened around my neck.

"Not fair…" she mumbled through her cries.

I spoke quietly into her ear then. "I know, baby. I'm sorry and I know it isn't very fair to you. But today I'm taking you out so you can pick out a brand new box. Whatever box you want, and it will just be your's. Your box, and no one else's, okay? Not Bella's…not Isabella's, but _your's_. And you can put all of your special things in there to keep them special and private just for _you_," I said, trying to placate her.

I kissed the skin on her shoulder before nuzzling my nose into her neck, observing from her emotions just how important this concept must be to her. To have her own things, independence, and privacy. Things that aren't really possible, being what she is and all…

"Does that sound good, sweetheart? You want a new box?" I asked, keeping my tone light and persuading.

"I want my stuff back…" she whimpered before the tears started all over again.

I hooked my hands underneath her arms then, and picked her up. She kept her thin arms wrapped around my neck and she wrapped her legs around my waist, clinging to me as I put one arm under her so that she was seated on it, and I could support her slight weight.

I began pacing the room and Marie continued to cry into my neck and shoulder. I would have never taken her for a cryer, but my Bella's words were coming back to me now. About how behind her tough exterior, she is just a broken and scared girl…and I had just broken her a little more by taking away the only things that she could call her own.

See, I knew I would mess this up somehow, but it's not a huge mistake. I can learn from this, and once Marie has a few new possessions of her own after today, she should feel a lot better about this whole situation.

BPOV

I opened my eyes to the sight of Edward's ear.

_His ear…?_

I yawned then, and realized that he was holding me like a child and pacing the floor of our bedroom. My head was laying on his shoulder because I had been asleep. I sighed and lifted my head to look into his eyes. He gave me a small smile, while turning his feet around and heading in the direction we had just come from.

How long had he been pacing with me in his arms like this?

"Edward…? Umm, how long have I been asleep?"

"Only about ten minutes, love," he answered before placing me back down on my feet.

I nodded and asked hesitantly, "Do I wanna know what happened…?"

"I fucked up," he said bluntly.

**Yeah ya did...** Marie said slyly.

I raised my eyebrows. "What did you do?"

He slipped his shirt over his head, taking it off, and started walking over to the closet while beginning his explanation. "Marie and Isabella have been switching it up on me all morning…okay, everything went pretty well with Isabella, except for some of her language issues, and then when Marie came back around, asking about her motorcycle, I told her that it was staying at Jake's house because she wouldn't be riding it anymore, so she went into this whole speech about how it was unfair that I always take things away from her and nobody else. Not you, or Isabella…and as _ridiculous_ as her argument was about being treated unfairly, I understand why she's upset that her possessions are gone, and then she starts this crying jag and I couldn't get her to calm down, so I just held her and paced the floor until she finally just cried herself all out."

I nodded. "It'll be okay…" I assured him, because we could just buy Marie a few things for herself and she would cheer right up.

"I know," he said, slipping another shirt over his head. "Isabella was asking for a lot of stuff that we don't have, baby…and Marie wants her new box along with a few other things. I was thinking about just getting you guys a regular bicycle since she wants a bike so bad. And I still have to get your vitamins and protein shakes from that health food store. We should probably get going sweetheart, we're making a trip to Port Angeles for all of this."

I nodded. "Alright, just let me wash my face real quick. I can feel the dry tears on my cheeks and I hate that feeling…" I explained, walking over to the bathroom.

I slipped my wallet into my back pocket and once we were out in the garage, I realized that Jasper was letting us take his large SUV, since we didn't actually know how many things we were getting. The girls started listing things off in my head and I told them to wait until we actually arrived at a store because I would just forget it before then.

When we were on the highway, I told Edward some of the thing we should be getting. I played with his fingers on the hand that I was holding while I spoke. "Okay Edward, I'm letting you know right now that both Marie and Isabella have oral fixations."

"What do you mean?"

"Marie chews…it's a nervous habit and she finds some relief in it. She's got her gum, but then she also chews on her nails sometimes…pen caps, straws, her bottom lip," I explained.

He nodded.

"Isabella sucks…she finds it extremely comforting and it can relax her. So she's going to want freeze pops, lollipops, any kind of hard candy, really…juice boxes that come with straws and water bottles with a sports top on them, so that she can suck the water out of the bottle, as opposed to it just pouring into her mouth. When she doesn't have these things, she'll suck on her lips and her thumb," I explained before asking, "Have you noticed any of those things this morning?"

"Her lips and thumb," he answered quickly.

I nodded knowingly. "Also, as far as possessions go for them, they have very different, almost opposite interests. Interests that I don't understand, but whatever…that's probably because I don't share them."

"What types of things are they interested in, love? I want them to be comfortable, and I feel guilty knowing that I have nothing for Isabella back at the house," he said.

"Marie likes sports and music. She loves to sing and has a lot of fun playing soccer and basketball, riding on the bike, and swimming. Isabella, on the other hand…she likes art and a lot of outside play as well as quiet, inside playtime. So I'm thinking that they both could use the bike and maybe a basketball setup…you know, with the hoop that you put up outside and just get a basketball to go with it. And a soccer ball to kick around outside. Um, Isabella is going to wants a lot of coloring and art supplies, drawing paper, coloring books, markers, crayons, colored pencils…maybe even some sidewalk chalk for when she's outside on a nice day. Even some play-doh. Oh yeah, she also likes Disney movies and baby dolls just like every other little girl," I informed him.

**Bella, can we play on a jump-a-lene too?** Isabella's hopeful voice asked me.

**Fuck Yeah!** Marie's excited voice yelled. **Ask him Bell, ask him.**

I sighed, not really sure about adding another thing to the list when we were already getting so much.

**And a swing? Pretty please? Please?** Isabella whispered.

Marie's mantra continued on. **Ask him, ask him, ask him, ask him, ask him, pleeeeassssssse ask him Bell, please! Ask him, ask him, ask him….**

I smiled and gave in. "I'm hearing two other specific things, but I'm not sure we're going to be able to fit them in here…" I hedged.

"What is it, love? Whatever it is, if it won't fit then we could always have it delivered," he said in a hurried voice, practically begging me to tell him everything about them and their needs.

"A tire swing to hang from a tree and they are both yelling at me right now to ask you for a freakin trampoline. I guess the bed this morning gave them both the same idea," I said while remembering the memories Marie had shown me a little while ago.

I blushed at the thought of hopping around on the bed in only my panties and his shirt while singing into a damn hairbrush.

He chuckled. "Yes…they both had a lot of fun jumping on the bed this morning," he remarked before saying, "All of that stuff sounds fine, baby. I'm pretty sure we can fit it all in here…but that tire swing might have to be delivered," he reasoned while taking a glance into the back of the SUV where we would be putting everything.

"That's fine," I assured him before he brought up the subject of Isabella's language.

"Baby, it was just so fucking bizarre, and it came out of nowhere. She didn't know that she had done anything wrong either, and I had to explained to her that those terms were bad. I'm pretty sure she understands now, though…she seemed genuinely sorry, even though she didn't know it was wrong in the first place," he told me.

"Yeah, um….about that," I hedged.

"Yes?"

"I was pretty much brainwashed by Jim in the 2 ½ years that he had control of me. By the time he was done with me, racial slurs and profanity were things that slipped out of my mouth easily and I had it in my head that I was just this…this evil half-breed _thing_ completely incapable of even a mother's love, and that his torture of me was for my, um…benefit. To you know, 'rid me of evil' or whatever, so that I could make myself worthy of my mother and God," I said angrily. "It's all apart of his delusional bullshit, and I realize now how fucking crazy it all is, but…Isabella _doesn't_. And that is the problem. She's still in that frame of mind," I informed him.

He nodded sadly, but I wasn't sad, I was detached and explaining it for his benefit alone.

"So, I'm sorry Edward," I said with a smile, "but…I don't know how to help you and Carlisle change her view on that whole thing. I guess that's what therapy is for, huh?"

"Yes, it is," he said softly as he put the car's blinker on, ready to get off the highway now.

I turned on the radio and went over in my head all the places we were supposed to go, knowing that our first stop would be La Bella Italia for lunch.

_Mmm-mmm, manicotti_ I thought with a smile as we pulled into the parking lot of our restaraunt.


	16. Port Angeles

EPOV

We had been in the restaurant for about ten minutes now, and Bella's salad had just arrived. We stopped in here so I could make sure that she was fed before we spent the rest of the day shopping. I didn't want her to get hungry while we were out.

From everything that Bella had told me on the drive over here, it sounded like we had quite a few things to pick up, seeing as how Marie and Isabella liked different things due to their age difference. It was fascinating to me and I couldn't wait to get started. I loved the idea of buying things for my Bella…and Marie. And Isabella. I relished in the fact that I was their protector and provider and I can't help but do the job with a smile.

"Ucky…" I heard Bella…or Isabella whisper, bringing me out of my reverie.

We were seated in a secluded corner of the restaurant, in our usual table. We like to call it 'our spot' because every time I bring Bella here, we sit in the same booth.

"What's wrong, love?" I asked.

She had been fine a minute ago, perfectly happy with the small house salad placed in front of her.

Isabella pinched a slice of tomato that was in her salad with the very tips of her fingers and slowly picked it up out of the bowl, setting it off to the side on a napkin. She scrunched up her nose as she scowled at the offending piece of vegetable.

When she looked back up at me, she informed me that it was 'ucky'. I nodded at her and she continued to remove the remaining four slices of tomatoes from her salad. When she was through, she picked her fork up and ate a few more bites of her salad before setting her fork back down on the table. Then she grabbed a napkin and started folding it in different angles, I guess to keep her hands busy while we waited for her manicotti to arrive.

"Do they got peanut butter and jelly?" she asked, now ripping the flimsy napkin into thin strips of paper.

I made a mental note to grab some peanut butter and jelly while we were at the grocery store before I answered her. "No, but they have manicotti and it's already been ordered. It should be here any minute, baby," I informed her.

She furrowed her brow, looking up at me from her napkin ripping process and asked, "What's a manotty?"

I smirked at her. "Manicotti," I corrected before continuing, "is a type of pasta. It's got cheese stuffed inside of pasta shells and they put tomato and alfredo sauce on it."

"What's alfredo sauce?"

"A type of sauce that they put on some pastas." When she still looked confused, I said, "Don't worry baby, it's really good," I assured her.

She nodded and went back to playing with her napkin strips. A minute later, the food arrived and the waiter set the plate down in front of Isabella. I saw her jump a bit, startled by the plate being practically shoved in her face, but she settled down a second later, and the waiter left after I informed him that he wasn't needed right now.

She stared at it for a second before asking me which sauce was the alfredo sauce and I pointed to the white one. She retrieved her fork again and began eating it after letting it cool off for a minute. She got through one pasta shell of manicotti before she paid any attention to the glass of Coke that was on the table for her.

She grabbed it, eyeing the straw with some intensity and started to suck the drink down. After five long pulls of Coke through the straw, she stopped and pulled the straw out of her drink, bringing it to her mouth. When she looked back up at me, I saw a smirk creep up onto her face.

She brought the straw in between her teeth and started subtly chewing on it before saying, "Edward, I'm fucking full...can we go get my wicked box now?" then proceeded to chew on the straw again, while kicking her legs out a bit.

I wasn't so much surprised that Marie was out now, but I was filled with wonder at how I was able to differentiate between my three girls. The second that smirk played on her lips, I knew Isabella wasn't around anymore. And it was also interesting that no physical signs took place when Isabella and Marie switched. When Bella came back around, there was always some blinking, at least. But, my other girls have been playing the switcheroo on me all morning now and I haven't noticed any physical signs that the switch was actually taking place. I would have to let Carlisle know these details, he would find it very useful, if not interesting, as well.

"Actually we have to go to the health food store first, before we do anything else, Marie. You guys need some vitamins and protein shakes," I informed her.

She nodded, "And then…?"

I smirked. "And then, we'll go to a few other places for you and Isabella, but I need you to take at least two more bites of your pasta before we can go. You hardly ate anything, love."

She started to protest, "But-"

"But nothing," I interrupted. "I know that you want to leave because you're excited, not because you are actually full," I said knowingly.

She scowled at me, but grabbed her fork and quickly cut a piece off and stuffed it in her mouth before she begun chewing really fast.

"Slow down…you're going to give yourself a tummy ache, sweetheart."

She swallowed before proclaiming, "I really am full…" then stuck the straw back into her cup and drank the rest of her coke.

I nodded. "Alright then, let's go," I said, grabbing the check and standing from the booth.

She stood as well, then followed me to the register so I could pay the bill. Marie grabbed my hand as we walked out the restaurant doors and started skipping over to the car, pulling me with her, clearly excited about the day of shopping that we had ahead of us.

She smiled at me as I started up the SUV and pulled out of the parking space. After she clicked on the radio, she began looking around before asking, "Fuck…Edward, where's my bag?"

"We left it at home," I told her.

She gasped, "But what about my fuckawesome minty gum?" she asked, clearly about to have a fit.

_She can be so dramatic sometimes…_

"Calm down, love" I placated her. "Check the glove box, there should be a pack in there for you."

Her hand immediately latched onto the glove box handle and pulled it open, and she sighed in relief when she saw her precious pack of gum laying there. I remembered that Alice had gone out the night before and picked up a few packs, putting one in the glove compartment of each car for situations like this.

_How she got a coven of vampires to cater to her needs, I'll never know._

After she popped a stick of spearmint into her mouth, she began singing along with the radio while I drove over to the health food store here in Port Angeles. When we arrived and I parked, Marie told me that she wanted to stay in the car while I grabbed the two items that we had come here for. So I left the car running so that she could sing to her music, and got out of the car, hurrying into the store and purchasing the bottle of Centrum Complete multi-vitamins for young women and a small tub of protein shake mix.

MPOV

When Edward went inside the health freak store, I decided to step out of the car and stretch my legs. As soon as I closed the door behind me, I leaned up against the passenger side door of this fucking huge SUV that Edward has us riding around in. From what I understand, it belongs to Jasper…but whatever, I don't really care about that. I'm just fucking excited to go shopping and get a new box for my stuff. And _this time_, no one's going to take it from me. Edward already promised, and I intend to fucking hold him to that.

I was about to turn around and grab the sunglasses out of the car so I could put them on, when someone came up beside me. I looked to see who the motherfucker invading my space was, and instantly realized that I didn't recognize this asshole.

_What the hell does he want?_

"Hey, beautiful," the fugly person said to me, inching his face closer to mine.

_Ew._

"Do I fucking know you?" I asked him bluntly.

I don't like strangers and I was getting ready to let this motherfucker know my preference on that matter.

"Do you want to get to know me?" he smirked.

I squinted my eyes at him, appearing to take a closer look at his face. I noticed how his eyes were practically glued to my badass fashionable black shirt that Alice practically had an orgasm over, where my supple tits were located. He just wouldn't quit staring at my chest and it was pissing me the fuck off.

_What a pervy loser…_

I quickly scanned the area for Edward, and when I realized that he was still in that damn store, I decided to handle this matter on my own. It would give me something to do while I wait. I looked this stranger up and down and decided to play with him a little bit.

"Do you wanna get to know me?" I purred seductively in response to his earlier question that was so cliche, it made me want to vomit all over his skeezy dollar store shoes.

**Why are you talking to a nigger?** I heard Isabella ask me.

_You better not use that word around Edward, kid…he'd probably spank your ass_ I warned her.

**Why?**

_I don't know, but it pissed him off earlier, remember?_

**Has he done that to you?** she asked curiously.

_Yeah, once._

**Why?**

_I don't know…_ I answered her, not wanting to explain what happened with those bitches in gym class. _Jesus Christ, kid - you ask a lot of questions. Shut up, I'm busy._

**Where's my Edward?**

_Store. Now shut up._

"You wanna get out of here? We can go get some drinks or something," the hobo with bad breath suggested.

I chuckled darkly, still eyeing him up and down and knowing that when we 'got out of here', we wouldn't be going for any drinks.

_I want to play…_

"Sure," I said, making sure to swing my hips a little as I began to walk off.

We hadn't made it ten feet, before he pushed me up against the brick wall on the side of the store that Edward was in, taking entirely too fucking long for my liking. Then the goddamn perv stuck his greasy face in my neck and groaned before he intrusively pushed his hips into mine.

I smiled.

_Game on, motherfucker._

EPOV

I was in the checkout line, waiting my turn in the surprisingly long line in the store, when I decided to look out the window and check to see what Marie was up to. She was probably getting bored, sitting out there all by herself for this long. But when I turned my head to look out the window, she wasn't sitting in the SUV.

_Where the fuck is she? _

My thoughts turned to anger as I imagined her walking off by herself. Or, oh my God, Isabella walking off by herself!

I immediately scanned the minds of people around the area, especially just outside of this building to see if anyone had seen her. I quickly identified her whereabouts when I came across a particularly disgusting mind located in an alleyway just to the side of this building. And he was…fucking _grinding_ on my woman, pinning her against the wall.

Suddenly enraged, but keeping in mind that I was in a room full of humans, I dropped the items in my hands and ran out the sliding glass doors of the building at human speed, keeping my mind focused on my Bella through that man's mind.

When I turned the corner, ready to rip him apart for even thinking about putting his hands on my mate, I saw that the situation was already being handled…by Marie.

I stood still, in the shadows, completely fucking mesmerized by the goddess before me. She was graceful and strong in her actions and I was suddenly so proud of her.

I noticed that she had already broken his left arm when she had turned the tables quickly, pinning the large man against the brick wall, but not before slamming his head into it. Hard. Once she had a very tight grip around his neck, cutting off his air supply completely and keeping him pinned, she kneed him forcefully in the groin and he bowed forward instinctively, trying to protect that sensitive area from any further damage.

She loosened her grip on his neck a little, letting him get some air, before leaning in and asking in an incredibly seductive voice, "You gonna scream? Huh?" she purred in ear. She backed her face away to look into his face again. "Go on…scream for me," she practically demanded.

When he didn't comply, anger flashed in her eyes and she slammed his head against the brick wall again.

He screamed then.

She smirked devilishly. "Oh God, " she moaned, looking at his anguished face. She leaned in once more to talked seductively in his ear. " I fucking love it when they scream," she informed him.

He whimpered then, and yelled out a strangled, "Help," but it wasn't very loud due to her firm hold around his neck.

Anger flashed across her features again as she punched him directly in his nose, "_You_ shut the fuck up!" she spat angrily in his face. He groaned in pain as she spoke in a low voice, "I didn't ask you to scream, did I? You're my bitch, you do as _I_ say," she growled. She tsk'd, then a shook her head slowly, eyeing him up and down for a second. "Look at you, you pathetic, skeezy piece of shit," she said condescendingly. "You really thought that you were gonna take advantage of the goods, huh?" she asked him skeptically. "Well, look at how that turned out for you, my pet. You want my sweet, warm little cunt, don't you?" she taunted, but before he could answer, she slammed his head against the wall. Again.

_Jesus Christ, she's going to kill him with a brain injury._

She let his body slide down to the ground before delivering four powerful kicks to his ribs and gut. When she was done, she asked breathlessly, "Who's the motherfucking victim, now? Huh?"

He didn't answer because he was unconscious now.

After delivering one more kick to his groin, she spat on his face and hissed out, "Goddamn _rapist_."

She backed away from his body and straightened out her shirt, before turning to walk in my direction. When she saw me, her mood did a complete 180 as she smiled brightly and ran into my arms.

I caught her and picked her up, holding her to me tightly, thanking God that she really was alright. I stuck my nose in her hair and inhaled deeply, kissed her neck and then trailed my kisses from her ear, along her jaw until I was finally kissing her sweet, soft and warm lips. When I finally released her for some air, she was breathless and beamed up at me.

"Can we go get my box now?" she asked excitedly.

I sat her back down on her feet and placed my lips to her forehead, kissing her precious flesh once more. "I am so fucking proud of you, beautiful," I murmured against her skin.

She giggled and wrapped her arms around my waist, hugging me tightly with a big smile lighting up her entire face. I wrapped my arm around her waist and turned us in the direction of the store again.

"I was getting ready to check out when I noticed what was happening over here in the alleyway, so I had to drop what I was doing and rush out here. I was so worried and angry…but when I got out here, you had already taken care of it. You did soooo good, baby," I doted on her as we walked into the health food store. "I'm _so_ proud of you," I repeated before dropping another kiss to the top of her head.

She beamed up at me and couldn't seem to wipe the grin off of her face. I knew she was always looking for my approval because she liked to please me, so my words were making her incredibly happy.

I kept her firmly tucked into my side while I grabbed the items I had dropped earlier and got back in line to check out. Luckily, the line had dissolved in the past ten minutes, so it wasn't that long of a wait.

When we were back in the car, I told her that our next stop was the grocery store and that she should be looking for a box at all of the places we go, especially the toy and electronics stores. If she hadn't found anything between our other four stops, then we would go to the mall before it closed so that she could look at the shops there for something she liked.

Marie had the radio back on and was singing along to Kid Rock's 'All Summer Long', showing her slight taste for country music and I smirked as she tried to add in a little southern accent of her own. She was so cute.

I was pulling into the parking lot of the grocery store when I started to realize that we might be out past dinner time, so I tried to think of a place to take her to dinner if we were still out. If she didn't want a drive thru place, then I'd let her choose between Rib Crib and a Chinese place. I smiled at my plan, knowing that my Bella liked those restaurants.

Going into the grocery store with Marie following, she grabbed a cart and rolled it by me. When she saw the sliding doors fixing to close, she got a mischievous look in her eye before she ran with the cart, charging towards the slowly closing doors, and then hopped on the back of it, gliding through the doors just as they were about to close, barely making it through. Once on the other side, she stopped and hopped down, turning around to smile at me as I walked through the sliding glass doors.

"You're silly," I chuckled at her.

"You love it," she declared with a smirk.

"Yes, I do," I agreed as I grabbed the handle of the cart.

And just like last time, Marie stepped up to the side of the cart, lifted her leg over the edge and climbed in, sitting with her back to the front of the cart so that she was facing backwards, looking at me.

I smiled down at her and she smiled back. "What are we getting?" she asked.

"First is drinks…juice boxes and water bottles," I answered.

"For the kid?"

"Huh?" I asked, momentarily distracted by trying to remember what we were supposed to get since clearly, Bella was not present at the moment to remind me.

She blinked. "Isabella," she clarified.

"Yes, for Isabella," I confirmed.

She nodded and hummed along with the overhead speaker system as I walked over to the drink aisle. I put two cases of water bottles in the cart in front of Marie, then grabbed a couple packages of Hi-C juice boxes. When we approached the candy aisle, I grabbed three bulk packages of Orbit spearmint gum, each package having ten individual packages in them.

"My fuckawesome minty gum?" Marie asked, while grabbing them out of my hands.

"Mmm-hmmm, yeah…your 'fuckawesome minty gum'," I confirmed, using her phrasing for it for the first time.

"Thanks!" she exclaimed and started juggling the three packages in her hands.

I smiled softly at her, "You're welcome, sweetie."

"The baby needs some fuckin lollipops, so don't forget those, kay Edward?" she said, eyeing the lollipops in the candy aisle we were standing in.

I nodded and selected a bag of blowpops, a bag of dum-dums, and a bag of tootsie-pops. While I was at it, I also grabbed a couple packages of strawberry crème-savers, and fruit lifesavers.

Marie was humming to a song as she proceeded to pile the candy in her lap with a big smile on her face. She started playing with the bags, flipping them around and then organizing them in separate piles in the cart as I wheeled her across the store to get a box of 100 ct freezer pop-ice. Once I added that to the cart, I grabbed a box of every flavor of teddy grahams that they had, before going to the condiment aisle, intent on some peanut butter and jelly.

I noticed that Marie's humming stopped while I was standing in the aisle for five minutes, wracking my brain on whether or not to get her creamy or crunchy peanut butter, before I finally decided on creamy. Glad that I had overcome that little crisis, I turned around to grab a jar of jelly. But…there were just _so_ many damn flavors.

_Damn it!_

I stood there staring at hundreds of jars of jelly, frustrated and unable to make a decision, when I heard a soft giggle.

I turned to look at…Isabella and smiled at her expression.

She looked so happy, surrounded by all that candy and she showed it by her shy smile and sparkle of amusement in her beautiful chocolate eyes.

"What are you laughin at, baby?" I asked her softly.

She giggled again and my ears delighted in the soft sounds coming from her mouth.

"You…" she answered in her adorable child-like voice.

"Me?" I asked, smirking at her.

"Yah-huh, b'cuz you're gettin mad at the jellies…" she said, pointing to the jars of jelly that I had begun to hate, and giggled again.

I chuckled. "Well, there's just so many of them, I don't know which one to choose. You wanna help me out, angel? Which one do you think wants to come home with us?" I asked her lightly.

She nodded and turned to look at the wall full of jelly jars. "The smuckers strawberry wants to come with us," she answered, softly.

I raised my eyebrows at her. "You think so?" I asked her playfully, grabbing a jar of her preferred jelly and inwardly rejoicing that I didn't have to stand here and make the damn decision myself.

She nodded enthusiastically and smiled.

I held it out to her. "You wanna hold it so it doesn't break? It's a very important responsibility," I told her in mock seriousness. "Do you think you can do it?" I asked, knowing that if I gave her something to do and kept her mind distracted with her 'jelly jar responsibility' that it would prevent her from growing bored quickly.

Her eyes grew a little wide and she sucked her bottom lip into her mouth, clearly contemplating her decision before she finally nodded and gently took the jar from my hands, holding it to her with great care.

I smirked at her before saying, "Thanks, cutie pie."

She blushed and smiled up at me.

_Fucking adorable._

Remembering that Bella was almost out of macaroni and cheese boxes, I went to grab five more of them, then a couple cans of tuna after Isabella had shyly asked for them. I asked her how many she wanted and she said 'three, please' so that's how many I grabbed.

I was pretty sure that I had gotten everything, so I started making my way over to the checkout counter. As we were waiting in line, I noticed that Isabella was eyeing the candy pretty intently. I didn't really want to add anymore candy to what we were already getting her, but at the same time, the bags of suckers were for later at home. She might want something for now since I noticed that she was sucking on those lips again.

Before I could ask if she would like something, she whispered, "Ringpop?" pointing in the direction of the little box holding several ring pops.

I nodded and grabbed one for her, noticing that it was grape flavor, and handed it to her.

"This one?" I asked, not sure if she liked grape-flavored things.

"What flavor is it?" she asked, holding it up and looking at it intently.

"Grape..."

She furrowed her brow. "Um...kay, what color is it?" she asked, still unsure.

"Purple," I answered.

She smiled and nodded. "Yeah, purple is very yummy," she informed me.

"Okay baby, you can have the purple one then, just wait to open it until we get out to the car," I told her.

While we were standing in line, waiting our turn to check out, Isabella was intently staring at something behind me with a look of slight confusion on her face. I turned to get a look at what had her so confused, and when I did, I saw two men standing about twenty feet away, holding hands and looking adoringly at eachother.

I shrugged, not thinking anything of it, and turned back around to scoot the cart forward in the line a little bit. Isabella didn't stop staring though, and I heard her gasp when the two men quickly pecked eachother on the lips for a kiss.

"How come those two faggots kissed like that...on the lips?" she asked before she turned her questioning gaze to me.

_Damn it..._

I sighed and gave her a stern look. I bent over the cart a little bit, leaning towards her and asked her quietly, "Isabella, do you want a spanking?"

I made sure to keep my voice down so that no one but her would hear me in the chatty checkout line.

She gasped, and her now glistening wide eyes bore into mine as she shook her head 'no'.

"What did I tell you about that word?" I asked, trying my best at keeping my voice quiet and facial expression hard.

_I can't do this. _

She bit her lip and sniffled before she whispered, "I'm sorry..." her remorse shining through her watery eyes as her shoulders shook a little because she was starting to quietly cry.

I gritted my teeth trying to keep my resolve to be firm with her, but it was useless. I knew that her crying was what was going to break me. Just like I thought from the beginning.

_Damn it all to hell._

I just kept my hard stare on her, contemplating letting it go this time because this was getting to be entirely too stressful for me right now, and I hadn't even done anything yet, but threaten her. My resolve to be firm wavered even more when I saw a tear slide down her right cheek.

I sighed, knowing that I would suck at being a parent...can't follow through with anything. I decided right then and there that I would definitely need to work on my willpower when it came to Isabella. Whether I liked it or not, I was going to have to be a part-time parent with her. And how is she supposed to put her trust in me if I can't do what I say I'm going to do? I need to be consistant with her, even when it comes to discipline.

Especially when it comes to discipline.

"Stop crying," I told her firmly.

I wanted her to calm down before she started to _really_ cry, causing an unnecessary scene.

She immediately nodded and started to wipe at her eyes with her small hands. She sniffled and swallowed convulsively, trying to keep the developing sobs down as I kept up my stern stare. I figure that this whole stern-look I had going on right now was punishment enough for her. She was getting pretty upset...so, maybe she would remember this incident and she wouldn't make another slip with those prejuduice terms of hers.

I hoped.

A few seconds later, she had completely composed herself, except for the occasional sniffle, and we were coming up on our turn to put our items on the conveyor belt. I looked away from Isabella's guilty face, and started reaching for everything around her seated form and putting it on the belt.

When everything was on there, sans the water bottle cases, I saw Isabella hesitantly hand me the jar of jelly and her ring pop. I gently took them from her, still not making eye contact, and laid them on the belt as well.

I made polite conversation with the cashier and quickly paid for everything, before loading the shopping bags into the cart to accompany my little Isabella. When we were outside and I was pushing the cart loaded with Isabella and groceries, I risked a peek at her. She was staring up at me with a sad look on her face, her eyes fearful and begging for forgiveness. I decided then, that she had learned her lesson and as soon as I got the groceries loaded into the back of the SUV, I turned to face Isabella, who was still sitting quietly in the cart and staring up at me...sucking nervously on those pretty pink lips.

She sniffled and I reached out for her. "C'mere baby..."

She stood up and reached her arms out for me. I picked her up by her waist, lifting her out of the cart, but instead of setting her down on her feet, I held her to me for a hug and she wrapped her arms around my neck tightly.

"No more bad words," I whispered the reminder in her ear.

"No more...promise," she mumbled into my neck.

I set her down then and kissed her forehead before reaching into my jeans pocket and handing her the purple ringpop.

She smiled up at me before taking it and saying, "Thank you."

"Your welcome, baby," I smiled back and opened the passenger door for her.

She slipped in and buckled her seat belt before I softly clicked the door shut. When I got in the drivers side, she handed the candy back to me with a frustrated look on her face.

"Can't open it..." she grumbled.

I ripped the flimsy packaging and handed her the candy inside of it. She smiled and slipped the ring onto her thumb, before sticking the candy part in her mouth. I turned my IPod on and the music flowed through the speakers into the space in the car as I pulled out of the parking lot, heading for the sporting goods store now.

Isabella was quiet during the drive and when we got to the store and started to shop, she remained quiet. I kept one hand on the cart and held her hand in my other as we walked the aisles of Academy Sports and Outdoors. I picked out a soccer ball, as well as a basketball and a hoop kit to go with it. When we came upon the trampolines, Isabella pointed to the biggest one, amusement lighting up her eyes, but still didn't say anything as she kept that ringpop in her mouth insistently. I slipped the box with the trampoline in it onto the large cart that I was trailing behind us. Just when I thought she was going to stay quiet the entire time we would be in the store, I heard the distinct pop of the sucker candy being removed from her mouth and she spoke.

"Edward, I want a motherfucking sweet ride...rugged looking but kinda girly hott at the same time, ya know?"

I smiled, knowing that Marie had come back to hang out. "That's fine...go pick one," I said, pointing her toward's the women's bikes that we were in front of now.

After test driving a few of them, which upset some sales people, but Marie quickly flipped them off before they could approach her, she picked a purple and black Women's Pacific Evolution 18-Speed bike and a black helmet to go with it.

I put it on the large cart, then we headed back up to the front of the store to check out. After paying for everything and talking to a sales associate, we were informed that they didn't deliver tire swings.

"That's bullshit," Marie declared as we were walking back out to the parking lot.

"I know, but we'll figure something else out for a swing," I said lightly while loading the trampoline box and new bike into the back seat area of the SUV.

Marie hopped into the passenger seat while I finished loading the other few items we had purchased. When I was finished, I got in the car, started it up, and pulled out of the parking space. Marie turned the radio back on and relaxed back into her seat, getting comfortable for the drive over to the toy store. Occasionally, she would stick the ring pop in her mouth, but she never kept it there like Isabella had been doing.

BPOV

I blinked against the flashing lights of a child's toy in front of me and was immediately confused.

_Okay yeah, this is getting old...and fucking disorienting._

I immediately looked around and noticed that I was in a toy store and that's when I saw Edward making his way over to me with a package of play-doh in his hand. He smiled and kissed my forehead quickly, before placing the 6pk of play-doh in our small cart.

**Ooooh, it's sparkly!** Isabella's voice chirped in my head as I glanced down at the items that were already in the cart.

We had soap crayons for the bath, sidewalk chalk, three beading kits, an Ariel water doll for the bath, coloring books, Crayola crayons with sharpener on the box, five different packages of Crayola washable markers, 100ct box of RoseArt colored pencils, a large MagnaDoodle, the sparkly play-doh that Edward had just put in there, and a black tin box with little cupcakes decorated all over it with a Cupcake Cult branded name on the side of it. It looked pretty cool, with the buckle latches on the side of it that I'm sure you use to open and close it with.

**It's my wicked new box, Bell! You like it? It's fucking sweet, huh? **

_Yeah, it's cool._

**And it's _mine_.**

Edward grabbed the cart's handle and my hand, and then we were off. When we stopped walking, we were in front of all kinds of baby dolls, barbie dolls and Bratz dolls. I knew that as a child, I hated Barbie dolls, and Bratz dolls weren't even around then, so I focused on the regular baby dolls. I let Isabella guide me to which ones she liked and we ended up in front of some kind of Baby Born dolls.

**I want that baby, Bella. Can I have her? Pretty please?** Isabella asked me shyly.

_Yes._

I reached out for the doll that was probably the size of an actually newborn baby. I got a package of accesories that was supposed to go with it too...a few changes of clothes, play bottles and play diapers. Then I picked out a little baby doll basinette so we could have somewhere to keep the doll with it's accesories when Isabella wasn't playing with it.

"Edward, Isabella says 'thanks'," I told him, speaking for the first time in the last fifteen minutes.

"Okay," he said before wrapping his arm around my waist and giving me a kiss. "I missed you," he whispered in my ear.

I turned to face him and smiled as he dug his hands in my back jeans pockets, gripped my ass, and pulled me flush against his body with a smirk on his face. I grinned at him and pressed my lips to his sweet cold ones. I brought my hand up to his cheek and let it slowly creep into his hair while we kissed and when I brought my tongue out to lightly glide it across his bottom lip, he chuckled and retaliated by squeezing my ass harder, and I moaned into his mouth. When we finally broke apart, I was breathless and smiled up at him.

"We're so _naughty_," I said playfully. "Making out in the baby doll aisle at the toy store..." I said then shook my head a little, a smile playing on my lips.

He smirked. "Cute."

"I try," I shot back coyly.

He raised his eyebrows at me then, and replied with, "I'll kiss you wherever I damn well please, Bella," then planted another kiss on my lips. When he rested his forehead on mine, he murmured, "You're mine," against my lips and looked into my eyes.

"I am," I breathed out, thoroughly dazzled.

He smiled at my confirmation and when other customers started coming into the aisle, he took my hand and started walking down the aisle again.

"They sell movies here, love. Tons of kid movies, we passed by them when we walked in. So after we pick out a special blanket for Isabella, we can go over there."

"Sounds good," I said while we passed by a bunch of transformers toys. "Where do we need to go after this, Edward?"

"This is our last stop, sweetheart. Marie and Isabella accompanied me to the other stores, and the SUV is practically packed full of all of the things we had talked about. The only problem so far has been the tire swing, but we got everything else," he informed me.

I smiled, relieved that we could go home soon. I started to notice that my feet were hurting. "That's great."

When we approached the infant section of the store, there were tons of soft blankets laid out for our selection. I finally picked a light pink one with the words 'Little Angel' on it. These blankets were in the baby section, but really, they were big enough for anyone to use as a comfy throw.

We entered the section with all the kid movies and video games. I immediately started grabbing the titles that I remembered watching as a kid, as well as some new ones that were pretty good. So...we ended up with quite a few of them. The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Peter Pan, Sleeping Beauty, The Sword in the Stone, Monsters Inc, Cars, Emperor's New Groove, Toy Story 1 & 2, Shrek, Wall-E, Alvin and the Chipmunks, The Incredibles, Lady & The Tramp, Robin Hood, Hercules, Hocus Pocus, and finally...Casper. The friendly ghost. Awesome. Freakin. Movies.

When we were satisfied that we had enough toys, we hurried over to the checkout counter, eager to get home and put this stuff away. Edward had called Jasper while I was picking out the movies, and let him know that we would be back soon with his SUV and thanked him, letting him know that everything fit. A few minutes into the conversation, he asked if he and Emmett would help him put together the trampoline and basketball hoop setup in the backyard. I guess they agreed, because Edward hung the phone up with a smile a second later.

After Edward paid for all this stuff, I helped him put the bags back into the cart and we walked back out to the car. When I got it my seat, I looked behind me to the back of the SUV and smiled at all the stuff he had managed to get. And sure enough, there was a big, long box on the floorboard with a picture of a huge trampoline on it and a expensive looking bike laying on it's side on the back seat on top of some grocery bags. I looked back at the picture of the trampoline and could feel myself getting excited at the idea of playing on it. It looked like a lot of fun.

When Edward joined me up front, he quickly started the car and we pulled out of the parking lot. The sun was starting to go down and I blushed when my stomach let out a small growl. Wow, we really had been out all day...it's dinner time already.

"Hungry, baby?" Edward asked knowingly, while fiddling with the buttons on his IPod and picking a song to play.

"Yeah, a little," I admitted.

"What would you like to eat?"

"Just some drive thru, honey. I don't want to go inside anywhere and eat," I said through a yawn. "I'm ready to get home and relax...my feet hurt."

He nodded. "Okay, love," he said and started rubbing soothing circles into my palm. It felt so damn good. "Which drive-thru?" he asked while looking at our surroundings. "There's a McDonalds, Taco Bell and KFC down the road that we take to the highway entrance," he informed me.

"Just some nuggets from McDonalds, please. We can get a chicken nugget happy meal there, and save the toy for Isabella," I suggested.

**What about me, Bell? Don't I get a fucking toy?**

I scoffed. _Shut up. You know you don't want a damn toy._

**Yeah, okay...but let's get some cookies from there too. Those are mmm-mmm, so fuckin yummy.**

_Yeah, okay._

Edward pulled into the drive-thru then, and told my order to the speaker, adding on a package of cookies for Marie.

When we were at the second window, waiting for the food, I reminded Edward to request some honey mustard sauce, because their nuggets and fries aren't good without it. The service window opened and my bag of food was handed to Edward as he asked for my awesome dipping sauce. They handed him two packets of it, then we drove off, headed back home to Forks.

Once we were on the highway, I got the food out and ate it quickly, listening to the music playing through the speakers. When I was done, I balled up the paper trash and set it down on the floorboard by my feet, then turned to face Edward.

"I'm tired," I told him through a yawn.

"Go to sleep, baby. We won't be home for another hour, or so...take a little nap and I'll wake you up when we get there."

I nodded, liking that idea. Edward turned the music down, so that it was just a soft backround noise, and I leaned the seat back before turning on my side to face Edward. He reached a hand out to me, and I took it, bringing it to my lips and softly kissing his cool knuckles.

I closed my eyes and kept his hand in my grip, close to my face so that I could smell him and feel his cold skin up against my cheek. He lightly moved his index finger, so that it softly grazed across my cheek and soon, I was slipping into unconciousness, knowing that after an entire day of shopping, our next stop would be home.

* * *

A/N:

Well, they had a busy and eventful afternoon ~ Marie manhandled a perv and Edward got a harsh taste of the realities he faces trying to parent Isabella. And poor Bella, she's barely getting any face time in there...that's because Isabella is just beginning to come out again. She and Marie will battle for the spotlight for a while, while Bella just chills in the backround. And if you're wondering if the rest of the Cullens will play a main part in this fic, the answer is a big fat NO. The only other Cullen that we will be seeing around often is Carlisle and that's only because he's the doctor in the story. Edward and Bella are really the fantastical stars here and everyone else just fades into the backround...only making guest appearances every once in a while.

Is that cool with you?

Please review and let me know your thoughts!

xoxo


	17. Criminal Charges

BPOV

I woke up just as we were pulling into the garage. As soon as I opened my eyes, Edward told me that my father was here and that he needed to talk to me.

"But what about all of this stuff?" I asked, pointing in the general direction of the backseat and yawned.

Edward smiled, "I'll take care of it. My brothers and I are going to put together the trampoline and basketball hoop out back, so you can have some privacy with your dad."

"Yeah, okay…" I agreed, then got out of the SUV but immediately turned to open the back door.

"I'll get it, Bella," Edward reminded me, but I grabbed some of the bags anyway.

He came around to my side of the car and saw the five bags I had gathered in one of my hands. He went to reach for them, but I stuck them behind my back.

"I can still help," I told him, then gave him a quick kiss before walking by him into the house.

When I was in the hallway, I checked the contents of the bags so I would know where to put them. After I looked down, I saw that they were full of candy, crackers, peanut butter & jelly and some other stuff, so I headed towards the kitchen.

When I got to the kitchen, I put the bags on the counter and started to unpack them, intent on putting the various items away, but Esme came into the kitchen to stop me.

"Hello, dear…did you have a nice time?" she asked and put a hand on my shoulder.

"Yes I did, how was your day?" I asked, making polite conversation with my favorite mom.

"It was fine," she informed me, then started reaching for the items that I had taken out of the bags. "Your dad is here. Go talk to him, we will take care of putting everything away," she assured me as she was putting some macaroni and cheese boxes in the cabinet.

I nodded, resigned to the fact that nobody was going to let me help even though all of this stuff was for me, and went to the dining room where I knew my father would be seated at the table. I casually strolled out of the kitchen and into the next room, spotting the back of my father's head.

"Hey Dad," I greeted as I slipped into the chair at the head of the table to his left.

He jumped a bit, startled by my sudden presence and I had to fight a smile at the fact that he was feeling a little anxious and creeped out. He _was_ in a freakin vampire lair, after all.

"Oh, hey Bells," he greeted and nodded at me a bit.

I put my elbows on the table and got comfortable in my chair. "What's up?"

"Um…" he hesitated, "How are you doing?" he hedged.

I nodded slowly, wondering why he cared all of a sudden. "Fine…" I replied lamely. "We just got back from a day of shopping in Port Angeles," I informed him as an after thought.

"That's great…sounds fun," he replied a little too enthusiastically.

I rested my chin on my right hand and narrowed my eyes a little in suspicion. "What's up, Dad? I mean, really…"

He sighed, clearly having been caught trying to stall, and rubbed the back of his neck nervously before he finally just spit it out. "The judge added an additional fine to your charges," he stated, then finally made eye contact with me.

I tensed and was silent for a minute, feeling myself grow irritated all over again at the fucked up situation that Marie had put me in over the last six weeks. I had come back into awareness one day, only to find myself in a fucking holding cell at the police station where my father works.

Marie had taken over for three whole days, and in that amount of time, I had shoplifted from a Walmart and assaulted one of their security officers…all while having a small baggy of marijuana in my back pocket. You can imagine what happened when the cops showed up shortly after that, my dad being one of the attending officers.

I had already been in the holding cell for an entire twenty-five hours before my awareness came back, and I spent two more days in there before my father finally let up, figuring that I had learned my lesson, then let me go home. But I still had criminal charges on my record and had to go to court. I was sentenced to a $300 fine and assigned forty-five hours of community service that was to be completed by a certain time. The deadline was twelve days ago, actually.

Well, I paid the damn fine and I did the grueling tasks of various community service assignments that the county had handed down to me. So this should not be a problem anymore. It should have been done and over with…

**So what the fuck is the problem?**

"Why…?" I asked slowly, confused because I hadn't done anything wrong.

"You skipped out on the last day of your community service," he informed me.

I shook my head. "No, I didn't," I immediately denied.

"Bella, don't lie to me. I have the court reports and all of your hours were logged into the system and signed off on," he said before accusing me again, "You skipped out on your last day."

Suddenly angry, I yelled, "I _told you_ to call those bastards and get the day reassigned! I was sick, puking my guts out and laying on the fucking bathroom floor for two days."

He furrowed his brow at my sharp tone and I took a second to calm down. I didn't want this visit to be tainted with fighting.

After a minute, I spoke calmer. "You know this," I reminded him.

"Well, Bella…obviously I forgot since I've been swamped at work lately-"

"Fuckin your whore lately…" I said lightly.

He shot me a glare and I glared right back as he continued as if I hadn't spoken. "You shouldn't have committed those crimes that got you into this mess in the first place, so you have to deal with the consequences of your actions. And that includes the consequences of skipping out on the responsibility of your punishment," he informed me.

I covered my face with my hands. I was suddenly angry again.

"I didn't skip out!" I yelled into my palms before looking up at my father.

He was giving me a hard look that showed no leniency or sympathy.

_Fucking hell._

**Well this sucks** Marie said out of nowhere.

_You think so? Does it?_ I said sarcastically before mentally yelling at her. _This is all your fault! Goddamn it Marie! I still can't believe you tried to walk out of the fucking Walmart with a stereo and then you **really** just couldn't help yourself when it came to the security officer, huh. You just had to break his nose and nut sack. God…you are so fucking unbelievable_ I grumbled angrily at her.

**Hey! That motherfucker _grabbed _me, he was practically begging me for a nut cracker. And I said I was fucking sorry! So SHUT UP! Stop yelling at me.**

_If I could smack you, I swear I would._

**Go ahead doll, _smack me_, and then tell me how our pretty face feels when you're done** she said cheekily.

_Ugh, just shut up. I need to think…_

I sighed and let my hands flop back down on the table, defeated. "What do I do? How much is the additional fine?"

He nodded, glad that I was now giving into the circumstances and not putting up a fight anymore. "I talked to the judge and he let me know that you have a choice. You can pay the additional fine, which would be another $300, or you can go do two days of community service. It's your choice, but I need to know in two days. By Friday," he informed me.

I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair, a habit I had picked up from Edward. After a few minutes of thought, I said, "I'll come up with the money…"

"How?" he asked, being nosy.

"Don't worry about it," I shot back.

"You shouldn't go asking Edward for the money, Isabella," he said seriously. "It's not right, and this is _your_ responsibility, not his."

I slapped my hand down on the table. "That's _not_ how I'm getting the money," I said angrily, mad again that he had automatically assumed that.

He stared into my eyes for a minute, seeming to search for the truth of my statement, before he nodded and said, "Right, well…I'd better get going."

He started to stand from his chair and I was suddenly disappointed that this was the only reason he had come to see me. To inform me of an additional charge on my record, not to actually talk to see how I was doing, or to spend time with me. And then I was mad that I was disappointed in the first place…I should have expected this from the beginning.

He had _always_ been a neglectful father.

I shot up out of my chair. "Yeah, well don't let the door hit you in the ass on your way out," I said before I walked by him, shoulder-checking him as I did.

I walked through the living room and noticed the only person in the house was Esme. Everyone, no doubt, had heard that entire conversation, but I was thankful that they didn't intrude. They were all out back, helping with the trampoline or basketball hoop.

Esme had a concerned look on her face as I passed by her. "I put all the groceries up and I'll see your father out, sweetheart," she informed me.

I nodded and smiled at her to let her know that I was alright, but didn't speak as I headed up the stairs to my room. When I got up there, I saw the several shopping bags full of toys on the floor by the bed. I immediately occupied myself with putting those things away.

I took the soap crayons, bubble bath solution and Ariel water doll into the bathroom. I decided to just stick them in the cabinet under the sink. They would be waiting there for Isabella and her bath times…I remember playing in the tub a lot when I was a kid, so Isabella should have fun with her little bath toys.

I got Marie's box and her beading kits and put them on top of the dresser. I wasn't sure where she wanted them, and I wasn't going to ask her, so I just left them there, waiting for placement later. I grabbed all of the coloring utensils, drawing pad and all eight coloring books, and placed them down on the small desk in the corner of the room.

I noticed that it was deadly silent in the room and it was making me antsy, so I decided to put on a movie for backround noise while I finished putting the girls' stuff away. I went over to the flat screen and pressed the power button, turning it on, before I picked out 'She's The Man', to watch. After sticking it in the dvd player and hitting PLAY, I turned back to the shopping bags on the floor.

Next were the baby doll and accessories. I took the doll basinet out of it's box and set it on the floor in the corner of the room, between the bed and the closet. Once I had the doll out of it's packaging, I laid it down on the play bed and started to rip open the packaging for it's accessories. After I had everything unwrapped, I put all the play bottles, play diapers, and baby doll clothes in the little diaper bag that went with everything. After the bag was packed, I set it down beside the basinet and turned back to the shopping bags.

I got the micro plush 'Little Angel' blanket out of the bag and unrolled it out of it's packaging, taking it over to the hamper to be washed with our clothes. I grabbed the small hamper and the bucket of sidewalk chalk then made my way downstairs.

I was holding the hamper to my hip and carrying the bucket in my other hand, when I entered the living room. I was greeted with the whole family, just sitting there…watching me walk down the steps. Like, they found me interesting or something.

I rolled my eyes as I made my way off the last step. "Look, guys…I know I have people living in my head and all, but if you could _not_ look at me like I'm here for your entertainment, that would be awesome," I told the room.

Alice giggled and Edward rolled his eyes. Rosalie scowled, as usual, and Emmett grinned at me. Esme and Carlisle just watched me adoringly, their unconditional love for me shining through their golden eyes.

"We were just waiting to see who was coming down to greet us," Carlisle said after a few seconds.

I smiled, understanding their constant dilemma. "Yeah, well it's _me_. The one and only," I said, nodding and continued to make my way towards the laundry room.

Esme stood. "Let me get that for you dear," she said, then reached for the hamper at my side.

"Thanks," I said as I handed it over.

"That's an awesome trampoline you chose, Bella," Emmett exclaimed.

"Oh, yeah? I didn't choose it, Isabella did, but I did get a look at the picture on the box and I think I need to agree with your assessment of it's awesomeness," I said with a smile.

"What that in your hand, Bella?" Jasper asked curiously.

I held it up for his viewing pleasure as Esme returned to the room. "Sidewalk chalk…you know, to draw stuff…on the sidewalk…outside," I replied lamely. I mean, I thought it would be pretty self-explanatory.

"Who is it for?" he asked, standing up and coming closer to where I was standing in the living room.

"Isabella," I informed everyone. "Yeah…I think you guys will find that she's quite the artist," I said with a nod.

Carlisle raised his eyebrows, intrigued. "Really?"

I nodded and bit my lip, before explaining, "Yep, that's her talent. Marie likes to sing and Isabella likes to draw."

After some thought, I said, " You know, it's almost sadistic how much Marie actually enjoys the physical aspect of a fight and Isabella is…physical too, just in the sense that she's very flexible. She will climb on anything, so keep an eye on her…umm, furniture, counters, ladders, trees, umm…really any random hanging thing that she can get a hold of," I informed them.

When I saw that I had everyone's rapt attention, I decided to continue on.

_Every little piece of information helps, right? _

**Whatever, it's not like we come with fucking warning labels, or anything. **

Right.

"She's quite the little escape artist," I said before adding, "survival instincts, you know," I supplied.

They nodded.

"Marie can be outgoing and hyper…Isabella is shy and quiet. They both can be affectionate, but they both also have a very bad temper. And foul language. And emotional baggage. So, um…yeah, enjoy that," I said pointedly, with a smile. "Well, I'm gonna go put this in the garage, so…yeah," I offered before walking off with the bucket of sidewalk chalk. I knew it was rude, but they were just all staring at me and I hate being the center of attention.

When I got out to the garage, I saw my new bike leaning up against the wall with the helmet hanging from one of the handle bars. I couldn't wait to ride it.

**It's mine** Marie notified me.

_You can share it_ I shot back before saying, _Shut up, I'm mad at you._

My mind was silent then , so I put the sidewalk chalk on the bench beside where my new bike was. When I turned to go back inside, I saw Edward standing there behind me. I jumped and exhaled sharply. He scared the crap out of me.

"You scared the crap outta me!" I told him.

"We need to talk," he told me, his face revealing nothing.

"Kay…" I mumbled warily while looking up into his blank stare.

He grabbed my hand then, and lead me back into the room still full of my vampire family.

"What…are we having a family meeting now, or something?" I asked lightly as I took a seat on the couch between Emmett and Edward.

Carlisle started. "Bella, it's not a problem for us to give you the $300 that you ne-"

"No," I interrupted him sharply. I sighed, realizing that I was being rude and then looked into his gaze. "I'm sorry, but I can't accept your money, on top of everything else…well, _more_ of your money," I corrected after remembering my afternoon of shopping.

"Won't you please let us help?" Esme asked sweetly.

I shook my head, slightly exasperated. "You guys _are_ helping me. Believe me, ok Esme? You guys have been wonderful and accepting of the crazy girl that you came home to. That's more than enough, really," I stressed.

"Of course we accept you," Edward and Alice exclaimed at the same time.

"Jinx!" Emmett yelled out, to which I smiled and rolled my eyes, then Rosalie smacked him upside his head.

"Quiet," she admonished him.

**She's mean…she hit him** I heard Isabella say.

_It's alright, don't worry about it_ I told her, but she didn't respond so I turned my attention back to the current conversation.

"And you're not crazy," Edward added.

**See? I fucking told you so** Marie gloated.

_Shut up._

I just nodded at him. "Look, guys…" I called out, getting the attention of the room again. "My life without you here was really messed up. I've been in a lot of trouble because of Marie and I've had a lot of ugly experiences and have done a lot of things that I regret," I revealed to them. "But none of this is your concern, alright? I can handle it myself. I've been handling it for a while," I insisted.

The room was silent, the vampires were stewing over what I had just said. After a minute, they all got looks of concern or regret on their faces and soon, Edward's velvety voice broke the silence.

"How will you get the money, then?" Edward asked, concerned.

"Don't worry about it," I repeated what I had told my father.

"But-" he spoke up and I interrupted him.

_God, I have to get out of the habit of interrupting people. It's fucking rude._

**Yeah it is** Marie agreed.

_Nobody asked you._

"I know people, alright?" I said. "Or…Marie knows people," I corrected after a second.

"What people?" Edward asked almost as soon as the words were out of my mouth.

"I've got pretty tight connections through Jacob. Or, shit…_Marie_ does. But Jacob knows it's Marie who associates with these people, and not me…he can tell the difference between the two of us really well because, apparently, it's not subtle," I explained.

"No, it's not," Edward agreed. "Wait…" he said after a minute. "Jacob knows about Marie?" he asked with an unfathomable look on his face…hurt?

"Well, yeah," I said as if it should be obvious. "She's been around for six months now. The last three have pretty much been spent with him."

"I guess that makes sense..." Edward said off to the side.

I rolled my eyes, knowing that he was jealous of my friendship with Jake. He needed to get over that, and it's his own damn fault that he wasn't around six months ago to meet Marie, and Jacob was.

That thought suddenly pissed me off, so I pushed it to the back of my mind and went back to the subject at hand.

"Besides, this is all Marie's mess. I've dealt with it for the last six weeks and I am _through_. _Done_. She's got connections with people, she can deal with this. Get herself out of trouble for once because I'm sick of it. She always does something stupid that always gets her in trouble, but then she leaves me to handle it. I'm sick of cleaning up after her," I vented, and stood up. "She can 'handle it' this time," I told them, then walked out of the room, heading up the stairs. I still had stuff to put away.

When I got up to the third floor, I raced over to the bathroom because I had to pee really bad. My speed would have made a marathon runner proud, I was seriously fixing to burst. When I was through and washed my hands, I opened the door to find Edward sitting on our bed, waiting for me. 'She's The Man' was still playing on our TV in the backround and he had been watching that while waiting for me to come out of the bathroom.

I smiled at him and went over to the bag with all of the kid dvds. I grabbed some of the movies and Edward grabbed the rest, then we went over to the movie shelf together and started to put them in their place, according to the shelf's already alphabetized order.

"What did Marie do?" he asked me, placing Over the Hedge on the shelf.

I stuck Peter Pan in it's spot as I thought of how to explain the situation. "Do you remember how I told you I was out of it for three whole days…and how it was disorienting, not to mention upsetting?"

He nodded. "Yeah," he said and placed Cars on the shelf.

I stuck both Toy Story dvds in their spot and continued. "Well, in those three days, Marie had managed to land me with a criminal record. I have three charges against me: Larceny, Assault and Possession of an illegal substance."

Edward's looked shocked and angry at this, but I continued on, placing The Little Mermaid and Lady and the Tramp on the shelf next. "She tried to steal a stereo from a Walmart. And when their security guard tried to stop her, she assaulted him. You know, because he grabbed her, or whatever. She broke his nose and kicked him in the nuts. Then, as if that wasn't bad enough, when the cops showed up, there was a small baggy of marijuana in her back pocket. Oh yeah, and since we're in Forks and just because I'm _that_ lucky, my dad was one of the attending officers on the scene," I informed him.

He put Shrek on the shelf and asked, "What happened then?"

"Well, it's needless to say that he was pretty pissed," I said, and put Sleeping Beauty away. "So, I get arrested and all that jazz, and they stick me in a holding cell down at the station where my dad works. When I came back into awareness, I was so freaked out. I didn't know why I was locked up or why my dad was being so cold with me. After a while though, Marie showed me what had happened, so then I understood, but I was furious at the same time. My dad didn't let me out to go home until two days later. I had already been there for twenty-five hours, so they kept me in there for three days total," I said and put Monsters Inc on the shelf.

"So if you stayed in jail, then why do you have fines and stuff?" he asked, confused, then put Robin Hood and Sword in the Stone on the shelf.

I stuck The Emperor's New Groove up there and answered, " Because keeping me in there wasn't the county's punishment, it was my dad's. The county sentenced me with a $300 fine and forty-five hours community service that had to be done by a certain time…twelve days ago, actually. But I'm in this funk now because I missed the last day of my community service because I was sick and my dad forgot to reschedule it for me. So now, I either pay another $300, or do two additional days of community service."

"Yeah, I heard that part, baby," he let me know as he put away The Lion King, Hocus Pocus and Casper.

I put up Hercules before I continued on. "So Marie knows some people through Jake…and from what I understand, this is a sure fire way to make some money. Apparently, she has done it in the past when we've been in some binds. She owed this guy some money one time, but didn't have the money to pay him back. After getting in a fight in the streets with his girlfriend for the third time, the girl finally got a hit in, and I ended up with a black eye. Well, Jake saw it when I went to visit him the next day and that's when he 'helped her out'…I'm not really sure how, but he did. And I know it's safe, because I didn't get hurt or anything. He said if she every needed help again, to just give him a call and I trust Jake. He wouldn't hurt me or let me get hurt, so I'm going to let Marie call him. She keeps sending me this vibe, like that's the solution to this problem and that I should just call Jacob as soon as possible. Almost, like the solution is so easy and simple, that I shouldn't be worrying as much as I am right now."

**You shouldn't be fucking worrying at all. I'll take care of us, doll.**

He had a look of concerned apprehension on his face by the time I was done with my explanation. After he put Alvin and the Chipmunks and The Incredibles on the shelf, he asked, "How did the boy help?"

I could hear the jealousy lace through his tone, but ignored it. "I don't know, honey. The boy…_Jacob_ won't tell me, saying that it's better if I don't know, and Marie just flat out won't show me. At all. I don't know…it's almost like it's their little secret," I said, then shrugged. "I don't really care how…as long as I don't get hurt, and I get the money, I want to do it. Whatever it is. I don't want to ask you or your family for the money for this. You guys have already done so much and it's not your problem," I explained.

Edward turned away from the movies to face me then. He looked kind of mad. His hard voice confirmed my theory a second later.

"Bella, anything that concerns you, concerns me," he said with conviction.

_Oh…so, **now** he cares?_

Returning his anger, I turned to face him and just said what was on my mind. "Yeah, that sentiment would have been great seven months ago," I told him sarcastically before shaking my head and continuing on, seriously now. "Just…don't give me that bullshit Edward, because if that was true, then you would have never left, meaning that you would have been here when Marie started coming around, and you would have witnessed all of her little antics for yourself, _six_ months ago. She got me into this mess, and I got us out of it. Jacob has helped us with money before, and he will help us again," I stated with finality.

His eyes widened a bit at my statement, "Bella-"

But I held up my hands to stop him. "No, Edward. I _don't_ want to fight. I didn't say that to upset you. I was just stating a simple fact, and I really think that you need to voice your honest thoughts, just like I did mine," I told him forcefully. "I know that you are hiding behind your 'concerned façade' to prevent the truth from coming out."

He scoffed. "What truth?"

"That you are jealous!" I exclaimed, as if it should be obvious. "You are upset because Jacob has been there in my time of need, and Jacob has been my friend, and Jacob has saved my life. But you know what?"

"What?" he spat at me, clearly angry that I was calling him on his true emotions.

"You don't need to be! Damn it, Edward…all of those times that I needed help with something or in some way, or I just needed a friend or someone to talk to, I wasn't thinking about Jacob. He was just there, but I didn't need him, I needed _you_! It is your own fault that you weren't here to fullfill my need for you in my life, and you _know_ that."

We were silent for a minute, Edward looking hurt, worried and angry all at the same time. I'm sure that my features mirrored his own.

"Bella, I am here now, and I'm not going anywhere," he reminded me in a harsh whisper. I think he was whispering to keep himself from raising his voice to me. "I can help you with this now, you don't need the boy to help with the money, you don't even know what he's got you doing to earn it," he said, exasperated.

"I already told you that you aren't paying the damn fine, Edward. And it's not safe, or smart for me to go do community service now, not when the girls are coming around all the time now, just…randomly. I can't risk being out by the highway picking up trash, and all of a sudden Isabella comes out. That wouldn't be good," I explained.

He sighed and nodded. "I know."

My vision started to blur as the dull ache in my head began. I knew that one of the girls were trying to come out, but I wasn't sure which one, since they were staying eerily quiet.

I was suddenly tired of this argument that I was having with Edward, so I decided that while I was still around, I would try to let him know that I wasn't really angry with him. I was just worried about this new dilemma and still very hurt from his abandonment.

I heard him say my name before I opened my droopy eyes and sighed out, "love you, Edward', before everything went black.

* * *

A/N:

So Jacob already knew about Marie...bet you guys didn't see that one coming

How is Marie going to come up with the money...what does Jacob have her doing?

Please REVIEW ~ Pretty Please

Let me know your thoughts!

xoxo


	18. Tantrums, Markers & A Breakthrough

EPOV

Bella was completely right. I was jealous of that dog, but she was also completely right that it was my own damn fault. So I just shut up and let her have her say on the matter, because I was speechless. There were no excuses for my behavior and I had already told her my reasoning at the time for leaving, which she accepted and forgave me for.

I really shouldn't have made a big deal about this, because I clearly wasn't hiding my emotions as well as I thought I was. She had called me out on my jealousy less than three minutes into the conversation. But…jealous, or not, I was still concerned. What exactly had Jacob been doing to help Marie out with money? What had Marie been doing to earn the money? All my thoughts turned to prostitution as a possibility, but I quickly squashed that idea. Bella was still a virgin, and I knew for a fact that the dog thought he had some sort of claim to her, which was just sickening and completely false, but it gave me peace of mind that he wouldn't let another man put his hands on her. Especially if he thought that she was his. Which she isn't. She's fucking _mine_.

I noticed that Bella started breathing a little hard and squinting her eyes a bit. She bit her lip, looking distressed.

"Bella?" I asked, wanting to know if something was wrong.

She sighed heavily and mumbled 'love you, Edward' before her eyes shot open from their previous droopy state.

She smirked at me and said, "Edward I will take care of my pretty Bell. I always have, no need to worry," Marie assured me lightly and turned back to the movie shelf to stick My Dog Skip and It Takes Two in their spots.

_Hmm...Marie will answer my questions._

"How, Marie?" I asked, looking at her side profile as she concentrated on the alphabetizing task. "How will you take care of it?"

"Jacob takes me to Quil's house. Quil gives me the goods. I sell the goods at a marked up rate, then I give him the money for the goods and keep the profits for myself," she explained casually.

I growled low in my chest, suddenly very angry at picturing her dealing drugs to make a profit.

"It's all very fast and easy," she assured me in a light tone.

I just stared at her while she finished adding Isabella's movies to our dvd collection. I couldn't speak, I was so angry. What she was describing was so dangerous…not to mention illegal. She was a drug dealer on the side?

No.

_Absolutely not._

And to know that the fucking mongrel had facilitated all of this. He had allowed her to be in danger of junkies and crack heads who wouldn't think twice before they cut her throat and stole the drugs off of her dead corpse, instead of paying for it. The next time I see him, I'm going to break his fucking neck. And Bella won't be seeing him again at all, so I don't need to worry about her being endangered by his and Marie's stupidity again.

When Marie was through, she turned to face me and furrowed her brow in confusion. I'm sure my eyes were black with fury and my chest was just fucking rumbling away…

_Okay, I need to calm down._

There really was nothing to worry about because Marie wouldn't be calling him…wouldn't be going to his house…wouldn't be going to the Reservation at all…wouldn't be seeing him anymore.

_So, I don't need to worry._

I'll just give Jasper the $300 to take down to the court house tomorrow to take care of Bella's fine that was Marie's fault in the first place - _*growl*_

_FUCK! Wrong thing to think about…_

Okay, so nothing is going to happen since Marie won't be getting the chance to sell any of those drugs anymore, and Bella's court fine will be taken care of tomorrow, first thing in the morning.

I looked into Marie's eyes and lost myself in them, trying to further relax my emotions. I concentrated on those chocolate depths, the delicate curve of her jaw, that adorable button nose, perky little ears…rosy pink lips…

I could feel my gaze begin to soften as the growling in my chest came to a complete stop. I took in a deep breath, basking in her scent, reminding me of why I needed her alive, to prevent me from wringing her fucking little neck for being so goddamn stupid, and I-

_Okay, calm down…_

After a few more deep pulls of her scent, and some help from Jasper downstairs, I was completely back to normal.

For the most part.

When I thought I could trust myself to speak without it coming out as a snarl, I spoke. "Marie, you won't be 'selling any goods' anymore, and the matter of your fine will be taken care of in the morning," I informed her in the calmest voice I had available at the moment.

"No…" she protested slowly, before she continued on. "My Bell said that you couldn't pay it, and that I was going to fucking take care of it. I know how to get the goddamn money Edward, it'll only take me like ten minutes," she said with a shrug before I interrupted her.

I couldn't hold my inevitable anger back anymore, and just fucking lost it. "Well, I said NO and that's fucking final, Marie! Alright? Bella does _not_ call the shots around here, especially when it comes to her safety, do you understand? I will not have you turning into a fucking little hoodlum, running around with werewolves and selling drugs everytime you get yourself into a bind. _Is. That. Clear_?" I practically yelled at her while giving her a stern look.

"Don't fucking yell at me," she said with a glare.

"Then don't fucking question me," I said in a low, angered voice. There might have been some growl in it too.

She huffed and said, "I wanna call Jake."

"No," I snarled at her.

Just the sound of that mutt's name had my muscles coiling for a fight.

"Yes!" she yelled, then stomped her foot in a very Marie-like manner.

"Stop it," I told her, cutting her tantrum short. "If you want to start throwing a fit, then I'll give you something to cry about. Do _not_ start with me right now, little girl," I warned her.

"I wanna call him, give me the phone!" she screamed, then tried to go for my pocket.

I quickly moved away, deciding that distance between our bodies was a good thing right now. I was just _this fucking close_ from making my threat to beat her ass come true. About five seconds away from it, actually. And that wasn't good at all. Sure, the circumstance might call for it, but my anger couldn't be present. None of it could, or I would end up hurting her. I had to quickly get my emotions in check before I did something that I would regret forever.

She was standing over by the foot of the bed, scowling at me and I had my back pressed up against the door, putting as much space in between us as possible. Her eyes started watering before she screamed and stomped her foot, picking up the nearest thing, which was a pillow, and throwing it at me. The soft pillow landed it's target on my hip, before falling to the floor at my feet.

I fixed my hard glare on her and watched as tears streamed down her cheeks before she yelled at me, "He's my friend!"

"He is _not_ your friend!" I shot back at her, the growling in my chest starting up again. "He taught you to ride a motorcycle with no protection, put the insane idea of cliff diving in your head, and let you hang around with drug addicts, encouraging you to do their dirty work for them," I informed her in a hard, clipped voice.

She stood there, huffing and blushing furiously with her anger, but I didn't let her get a word in. "Junkies and drug addicts don't give a shit about you, Marie! They would rather slit your fucking throat and leave you for dead, than to have to actually pay for their addiction," I informed her before I decided to voice the new rules I had just decided on.

Isabella needs rules about language, and Marie needs rules about the company she keeps, apparently.

"There will be no more Quil, no more_ 'goods'_, no more goddamn La Push Reservation as far as I'm concerned. And if that fucking dog wants to see you, then he can come here and visit, NOT the other way around. That is _final_," I said, my tone leaving no room for argument.

After she swallowed down a sob and sniffled, I added, "Do not try to persuade me any differently, Marie…it will only get you into trouble," I said, warning and reminding her of my threat to actually spank her. I wouldn't do it now, but there was _always_ later, after I had calmed down.

She wiped her eyes and stomped her foot again, before flinging herself on the bed and crying into her pillow. Mumbled words of, 'I hate you', and 'he's my friend', and 'it's not fucking fair' kept falling from her sobbing lips but they were all muffled by the pillow.

About ten minutes had passed before I felt Jasper sending Marie some waves of calm to relax her breathing and soothe her sobs.

A part of me was feeling really guilty and horrible for yelling at her like that. But frankly, I just couldn't fucking help myself, and…it needed to be done. I stayed by the door, keeping a safe distance and watched her breakdown at the thought of losing her best friend.

I was calmer now and I decided that when she would be receptive to my embrace again, I would approach her and clarify her misconception of Jacob. She was thinking right now that she could never see him again, and that's why she was so devastated right now. But that's not what I said. It might have been what I was _thinking_, and what I _wanted_ to say, but it isn't actually what I said.

She could still see him, just over here…on my territory, so that I could monitor that mutt and his impure thoughts towards the love of my life.

She _is_ mine and I plan on making that fact abundantly clear to him.

I was interrupted out of my reverie by the movement of Marie's body. It had been still while she had sobbed into her pillow, but now she was sitting up. She hopped down off the bed and reached for a tissue. After she blew her nose and wiped her cheeks, she started walking in my direction.

Her lip was trembling and her eyes looked so full of sorrow, that it made my breath hitch at the sight of it. She was very, very upset…

I was really surprised when she stopped in front of me, bit her lip, and held her arms out for my comforting touch that only I could give her.

Me.

Not Jacob.

_That's fucking right._

I immediately embraced her fragile little body in a hug. As soon as the tears started up again, I hooked my hands under her shoulders, picking her up and holding her to me.

Once her arms were around my neck in a death grip and her legs were wrapped securely around my waist, she mumbled into my neck, "He's my _friend_, I don't care what you say. My Jacob is _my_ friend." Then she lifted her head from my shoulder to look into my face. Her eyes were filled with determination as she spoke in a shaky voice. "You can't take him away," she pleaded with me.

I shook my head. "Marie, I'm not taking him away. You can still see him, he just has to come over here to visit," I told her, my voice no longer hard, but velvety soft as I felt my ingrained need to always comfort her come back to life when my anger dissipated.

"You fuckin promise?" she asked, her worn out voice cracking a bit.

"Yes, I promise," I murmured against her wet cheek before giving it a kiss, savoring her tears on my lips.

She nodded and laid her head back down on my shoulder.

I started pacing the room slowly with her in my arms, like I had done earlier today. I wasn't sure if she'd fall asleep, but it was a possibility since she had just worn herself out, throwing that dramatic fit of hers.

Not a minute later, her heart rate slowed and her breathing deepened, notifying everyone in the house that she was, indeed, asleep. While she lay asleep in my arms, I had a whispered conversation with my family, that were in various places around the house, from my room.

"Dude, is she alright?" Emmett asked. He was outside, jumping on the trampoline while Rosalie looked on in amusement.

"Yes, she is fine. This is the second temper tantrum today, so I have a feeling this might be a normalcy with her for a while. She can be violent and aggressive with a lot of people, but she won't stand up to me like that. I'm not sure why…"

"She respects you," Jasper added in his two-sense. He was in his bedroom with Alice.

"Or she's just afraid that you'll make good on your threat to bust her ass," Rosalie remarked.

"I don't know, maybe it's a little bit of both. I know she looks for my approval and that she likes to please me, so maybe she won't put up a big fight on things with me, because she thinks I won't love her anymore..." I hedged.

"She wants to please you because she shares Bella's love for you," Alice said. "So, instead of physically fighting you to try and get her way, like she normally would, she just…_doesn't_ and lets her frustration and anger on the matter come out through tears and temper tantrums."

"I hope she didn't hurt her throat with all that screaming," Esme said, sounding concerned.

"She'll be fine. Her throat just needs to rest a bit…" I informed her.

"I'll make some hot tea for the child," Esme decided and made her way into the kitchen.

"Edward, I want to get started on scheduled therapy sessions with Bella. I want it to become a routine, so that she gets comfortable with it as soon as possible," Carlisle told me.

"Sounds good, maybe you can talk to her tomorrow about forming some kind of schedule," I reasoned before turning my attention to Jasper.

"Jasper, will you take $300 down to the court house tomorrow, please? Around eight o'clock. I need that situation cleared up and over with. Bella doesn't need to worry about the law being on her ass right now, she needs to focus on her therapy and getting better."

"Yeah, no problem," he answered.

"Oh, I can go too, and while we're out, we'll look at a place for that tire swing!" Alice exclaimed excitedly from her bedroom.

I chuckled quietly, "Thank you, Alice."

"You can thank me by letting me play with the girls. You've been hogging all of their attention!"

"Well, actually…Isabella is very shy and still wary of everybody, so you can't blame me that she's been glued to my side every time she wants to come around. And as for Marie, you can hang out with her whenever you like, it really just depends on her mood."

"Alright, alright…but I bet Isabella will love me and Jasper when she sees the badass tire swing we're going to bring home for her," Alice said smugly.

"I have no doubt she'll love you anyway," I assured her.

Marie started stirring against my shoulder and I shushed her. When she eventually lifted her head and opened her eyes, I knew that I wasn't dealing with my sassy girl anymore.

She cleared her throat, "Edward, can I have a lolly?"

I smiled softly at Isabella, not realizing how much I had missed her adorable voice until she spoke again.

"Pretty please?" she asked hopefully.

I kissed her button nose. "Of course you can, baby." I set her back down on her feet and asked, "What flavor would you like?"

"I like red," she informed me, then turned towards the bathroom while softly muttering, "I gotta potty."

I turned and ran downstairs, grabbing Isabella a red tootsie pop and returned to the bedroom to find that she was still in the bathroom. I sat down on the bed, her 'lolly' in my hand, and smiled as I heard her softly humming the tune to Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. The toilet flushed then, and I heard the water in the sink running, so she could wash her hands.

I noticed that the movie that had been playing on our TV was rolling the end credits now. I got the idea to put on one of Isabella's new movies for her, so I went over to the dvd shelf and a second later, Isabella was standing next to me.

She whispered, "Pretty please?" then held out her hand for the candy.

I laid it in her palm and after she untwisted the wrapper, she stuck the tootsie pop in her mouth, where it would set up camp for the next hour or so.

"What movie would you like to watch, sweetie?"

She looked at the row of dvds and pointed to Peter Pan. I grabbed that one, and after putting She's the Man back in it's case and slipping it back into it's spot on the shelf, I loaded Peter Pan into the dvd player for Isabella. When I turned around, I noticed that she had grabbed a pack of her washable markers, colored pencils, and her drawing pad, then she sat down on the floor.

I grabbed a book off of my Bella's bookshelf and laid down on the bed, planning to catch up on my reading of The Morganville Vampires series while Isabella had fun with her drawing book.

I looked down and checked on her frequently though. She was awfully quiet, either transfixed on her paper or the movie, while the stick to that sucker hung out of her mouth. Sometimes her cheeks would hollow out and I could tell that she was sucking particularly hard when she did that.

She kept an eye on the screen as the movie started, but soon, her markers were out and the book was open. I went back to my reading then, content in the fact that I had bought everything that Isabella needed today, so maybe she would finally start to relax and get comfortable here. I needed her to stop being so shy around my family. She's living with them, after all. Everything would just flow smoother if she wasn't so anxious with them.

It was almost an hour later when I looked down to check on my quiet little Angel again, and I was very surprised by what I saw. I noticed that the empty stick from her tootsie pop was placed on the floor beside her leg. But when my eyes transfixed onto Isabella, I couldn't help but notice that she had been using her new markers to draw on herself.

She had her shirt off, her top half clad in only a bra, and she had drawn a rainbow around her tiny little belly button. Her entire left forearm, from elbow to wrist, was covered in bright pink marker. She was currently drawing dark blue stars around her right wrist and hand.

I reached out to still the hand that had the offending blue marker in it, and grabbed her wrist gently. "Isabella, no," I scolded her.

She looked up at me with an adorable smile and I could see now that her face hadn't made it out unscathed. She had purple little hearts decorating her delicate cheek bones and red squiggly lines on the skin between her top lip and button nose, and then all down her chin, effectively giving herself a Crayola mustache and beard.

I was having the hardest time trying to keep a straight face at the….just, fucking _cuteness_ of it all, but she really shouldn't be drawing on herself. This was a mess that my Bella would probably end up having to scrub off, and I knew that she wouldn't be happy about it.

"I'm pretty," she said softly, keeping that adorable smile on her face.

I let go of her wrist and nodded. "Yes baby girl, you are," I assured her. "You're _very_ pretty, but you can't color on yourself like that. That's what your paper is for," I informed her, pointing to the drawing book on the floor without taking my eyes off of the half-naked woman sitting below me. "You don't need marker to make yourself pretty, baby…"

She looked at me for a minute, then started to suck on her lips, seeming to think about something, before looking back at the unfinished stars around her wrist. She lifted the blue marker in her hand again.

I knew then, what she had been thinking and what she was about do now, so I repeated in a firmer tone, "No."

She stopped again and looked at me. As she kept her gaze on me, she slowly started to move the marker towards her star clad wrist again.

_Um...is she testing me?_

"She's testing you," Alice said from her bedroom a second later, confirming my thoughts.

I squinted my eyes into a glare and gave her a stern look, not unlike the one I gave her in the grocery store this afternoon.

The look stopped her dead in her tracks again.

We didn't speak and she didn't look scared, or apprehensive like she had earlier when she thought that she was in trouble…her gaze just remained curious. She really was just trying to see how much I would let her to get away with.

Well, she'll be learning the hard way that I won't put up with deliberate disobedience if she decides to put that marker to her skin again.

Luckily, she didn't, choosing instead to set the marker down, and turn her gaze away from mineto focus back to her movie. I breathed a sigh of relief and a minute later, she exclaimed, "Peter Pan!" as he flew across the screen while she giggled. "I wanna go to Never Never Land, Edward. Can we go?"

"Maybe someday, baby," I placated, then went back to my book, figuring that I could wait until after the movie to put her in the bathtub. After all, she had obviously worked very hard on all those patterns…and she actually looked really cute.

As I was turning the page in my book, my eye caught the bright red marker colored on her drawing book. I leaned towards it, intent on getting a better look at her mind's creation, after noticing that Isabella was still transfixed on her movie, and soon, I could see that it was not a drawing at all, but…_words_. But the words were not in my Bella's handwriting. In fact, it was completely different than what I was used to seeing in the classroom notes that we regularly passed to eachother. While my Bella's handwriting was straight and choppy, this handwriting was more rounded and neat. Isabella's handwriting.

_She can write?_

Apparently so, because I just came across the word 'fuck' a second ago. In fact, that's the word that had caught my attention.

I leaned over the bed and fixed my gaze on the paper, curious as to what my five year old had written. To say that the words on the page had disturbed me would be a severe understatement.

_Don't cry little girl-Love your fuckable little mouth-Be a good girl for daddy and suck it now-Evil seed-You will burn in hell Isabella-Kike baby-Dirty little girl-Your goddamn mother can't stand to look at you-I will taint your little kike cunt-Shut up-Swallow it-Stop begging-God doesn't like ugly-Timid little bitch-Lick it like your lolly-Scream again and I will break your face-I will give you purity Isabella-Taste it-Quiet your fucking mouth-It's what you need-It's our secret-Look at that sweet little ass-Your mother likes to be fucked like this-You like it-If you open your smart mouth again I will fuck it-Call me daddy-Want me to tie you down-I will kill you- My tiny slut-My friend will taste you now-You must bleed-Don't you dare let those niggers touch you-This is the only way._

"Carlisle, come here," I whispered harshly, as Isabella started to twirl a few strands of her hair, her eyes still glued to the screen.

Carlisle rushed up the stairs from his office, but stepped into the room slowly, mindful of Isabella. When he saw her half naked, marker covered form, he averted his eyes to my face only.

I waved him over and pointed to the paper. He leaned by me and read it over my shoulder. I heard his quiet gasp, and we began our whispered conversation at vampire frequency so that Isabella would be none the wiser and continue enjoying her movie.

"That is a form of automatic writing, and it will be an excellent tool for her therapy," he whispered to me.

"What?"

"It is usually when you give a child a pen and paper, and they just automatically write whatever comes to mind. These must be the words of her attacker, Jim, and she is inadvertently trying to get him out of her mind, and onto something physical, like the paper," he explained before saying, "This could be ground breaking for her."

He seemed entirely too happy about this for my liking, and I was still stunned by the words that were burned into my retinas at the moment.

"Did you _read_ it?"

"Yes. Yes I did, Edward and it is very disturbing, if not sad material, but…you have to keep in mind that this is the reason she has little Isabella as a alternate personality. Because of the trauma she faced as a young girl, not because she went to fucking Disneyland and had an icecream cone," he said, exasperated, as if I should have known this already.

I sighed, hating the thought of anyone hurting her, but I knew it had already happened and that it was in the past, and all we could do was deal with the present problem.

"You're right," I agreed. "How is she able to write like that and spell correctly, though? Isn't she supposed to be five?" I asked.

"Yes, but Bella's mind's basic knowledge of reading and writing is shared with all of her personalities, naturally," he explained before pausing to say cautiously, "Isabella appears sweet and shy on the surface Edward, but…I can almost _guarantee_ you that we haven't even begun to scratch the surface that is this personality. She is bound to be a very broken, very disturbed little girl. We need to keep an eye on her," he warned me.

Isabella turned around then, and noticed Carlisle standing beside me. She gasped and her eyes grew wide as she stared at him.

I tried to avert her attention back to me. "Isabella…" I called out to her.

She slowly tore her gaze away from Carlisle and when her eyes landed on me, she smiled. "Can we go now, Edward? To Never Never Land? We'll have fun, huh?" she asked me.

I smiled back. "Not right now, baby…you can't get into Never Never Land with marker all over your skin," I informed her.

She pouted as I continued on, serious now. "Isabella, baby…" I started gently, "why did you write this?" I asked, pointing to the paper with those disturbing phrases on it.

She looked down at it and shrugged, before moving it to the side and picking up another piece of paper and handing it to me. It was a picture of my face…and it was _remarkable_. Very detailed, like a professional had done it. There was even some shadowing in all the right places. She had obviously used her colored pencils to draw it, and it looked almost perfect…right down to my evil gold eyes.

"Wow, baby…" I breathed out, and turned my stunned gaze to the beautiful girl below me.

She blushed and smiled before saying softly, "It's _you_…it's my Edward."

Carlisle stared at it in wonder for a few seconds, his thoughts clearly amazed and thinking that we should have taken Bella seriously when she said that Isabella was an artist.

"You're a very talented little girl," he commented softly.

She blushed and scooted her body to lean against the bed right below me. I reached out to stroke her hair softly, immediately understanding that she needed my touch to calm her.

After a minute, she visibly relaxed and whispered, "Thanks."

"Isabella, can I have the paper that you wrote on? It's very interesting," he complimented it.

She stuck her thumb in her mouth and nodded her head. He nodded back and picked up that piece of paper, then casually walked out the door, muttering a 'goodnight' on his way out.

_My Isabella...what am I going to do with you?_


	19. It's Bedtime, Isabella

EPOV

I grabbed Isabella's wrist and pulled her thumb out of her mouth. She looked up at me and pouted.

I chuckled at her childishness and ran my cool thumb across her warm, jutted out bottom lip, murmuring, "No, Isabella…you can have your thumb at bedtime."

She nodded then, and stood up. "You like your picture, Edward?" she asked hopefully, then climbed up onto the bed and sat in my lap.

I wrapped my arms around her and felt her stomach muscles tremble under my cold touch. I kissed her forehead and stated confidently, "I do. I like it very much. I'm going to have it framed, and then we can hang it up on our wall," I suggested. "What do you think of that, angel?"

Excitement lit up her eyes. "I like it!" she said.

I smiled. "Good. Now, I think it's time for your bath, baby. We don't want that ink to stain your skin," I said while eyeing her topless form.

_Her face, arms and belly will have to be scrubbed_ I thought while shaking my head.

She blushed and asked softly, "Do I get to have bubbles?"

I nodded then lifted her off my lap, then headed into the bathroom and turned the tub's faucet on. Not really sure what a comfortable temperature for her would be, I called out, "Isabella, come here…"

She walked in and looked at the tub. "Do you got my toys?" she asked before I could ask her about the water.

I nodded and told her to stick her hand under the faucet to let me know when the water felt good. She complied and stuck her hand into the running water, before yanking it back with a yelp.

"What's wrong?" I asked, suddenly unsure of why the water hurt her.

"Hot…" she mumbled and sniffled.

I quickly grabbed the hand that had accidentally been burned and brought it to my cool lips. "I'll kiss it better," I murmured against her hot flesh.

She sniffled again, before she smiled at me. "All better," she whispered.

I turned the hot water down then, and added more cold water. "Try it now, baby."

She stuck the same hand under the faucet and shook her head. "Too cold…"

I added a little more hot water flow and told her to try again…

...four tries later, we had it just right, so I put the drain plug in, then went to grab her two bath toys and the bubble bath solution out from the cabinet underneath the sink.

"My Ariel dolly!" Isabella exclaimed brightly as I handed it to her.

I placed the soap crayons on the side of the tub and began to read the directions to the bubble bath solution. After placing one cap full under the flowing water, bubbles started to magically appear in the tub, making Isabella smile.

She giggled, clinging to my side. "My bubbles…" she mumbled.

I was suddenly faced with a dilemma that I should have realized like ten minutes ago.

_Do I stay?_

_Do I go?_

"Isabella, you're such a big girl," I began, my tone filled with encouragement. She nodded up at me and began sucking on her pouty bottom lip. "You can take a bath all by yourself, huh?"

I didn't know if I could stick around to see a naked, wet Bella and not give in to my instincts to take her. My mind may know that it is dangerous…and that this currently is not my Bella, but frankly, my growing erection didn't give a shit.

I had to get out of the bathroom. I could feel my stare being drawn to her perky little breasts that were being held up by that flimsy piece of cotton...and it would be soooo easy to just reach down, and…God, just fucking _rip it off_.

_I gotta go._

Isabella's voice interrupted me out of my internal monologue. "Not allowed…"

"Huh, baby…what's that now?" I asked, trying my damndest to rip my gaze away from her soft and supple looking-

"Not allowed to get a bath by myself," she repeated.

I exhaled sharply, trying to think of a quick solution. "Well, sweetheart…you know, you gotta learn sometime, and you're a big girl now, and…you know, there's no time like the present," I said nervously, knowing that I was rambling but I couldn't seem to help myself.

Isabella just nodded but didn't say anything, so I kept going, suddenly coming up with an idea. "Okay, this is what we're going to do..." I said and smiled softly at her, trying to get her to smile back. I wanted her to go along with this. I was desperate for her to go along with this.

She did smile back in response, so I continued. "You're going to be a big girl and get in your bubbles with your toys to take a bath all by yourself. I am going to be right next door, in the bedroom, and we will leave the bathroom door open. Okay? So if you need me, you just say my name, and I'll be right back in here," I suggested. "Does that sound good, angel?"

She nodded and dropped her water doll into the tub of bubbles. When she reached for her jeans to undo the button, I reached out to still her hands.

"Hold on, baby…" I instructed gently.

She furrowed her brow. "But how come?"

"Wait until the tub is full so that I can turn the water off before I go back into the bedroom."

"How come?" she asked again as the tub continued to fill.

"Because you aren't supposed to take your clothes off in front of boys," I said, trying to keep my explanation simple.

"Why…?" she asked, confused. "I get nakey in front of boys all the time," she informed me casually then went back to unbutton her jeans again.

I stilled them again and tried to reign in my anger at her statement, reminding me of how my Bella was broken at such a young age.

"No, Isabella," I told her again, referring to her hands.

"But-" she started before I interrupted her.

"Tub is full!" I might have said a little too enthusiastically, before letting go of her wrists and leaning over to shut the water off.

I turned back to find Isabella's curious gaze on me, so I figured I'd better explain yet another rule to her. "Sweetheart, you don't undress in front of people. Especially boys. Ever. Never ever," I said…maybe a little _too_ forcefully.

She just nodded after a minute and blushed, looking down.

I put my finger under her chin, making her keep eye contact with me. "Do you understand that, baby? It's really important that you do. It's _very_ important," I said seriously.

She nodded but continued to stay quiet. For some reason, I felt like I should warn her…like my instincts were telling me that what I had just said went in one ear and out the other.

"Isabella, I'll be very angry with you if you break that rule," I said lowly, keeping eye contact.

She nodded silently.

"Say it, Isabella. What is the very important rule that you need to remember at all times?"

"Don't get nakey in front of people…" she whispered to me and blushed again.

I nodded and kissed her pink cheek, right below a row of purple hearts. "Now, make sure you get all of that marker off of your skin. There's a washcloth on the towel rack above your head that you can use to help you scrub it off. Alright, baby?"

She nodded then, and beamed up at me. "I'm a big girl…I can do it," she stated confidently.

_God, I hope so._

I walked out of the bathroom then, and headed for the bed, content to just sit and wait until she was done. I couldn't wait to brush her long beautiful hair.

I decided to go downstairs for a minute and make her a chocolate protein shake to drink when she got out of the tub, and I had one of Bella's sleeping pills with a small glass a water sitting on the nightstand, ready for her when she was done with that shake.

I had been listening to Isabella splash around, her peals of giggling laughter echoing within the tiled bathroom walls, while I tried to decide which juvenile movie to put on for her tonight, when she called my name.

I was suddenly very nervous. I knew that those damn bubbles would do nothing to hide her beauty from my evil gold eyes. I would see everything...a part of me wanted to escape out the front door, and another part of me wanted to go into that bathroom and cater to of a very wet, very naked Bella, or hell, just fucking _join_ her in there.

Apparently, that part of me won out because my feet were pulling me in the direction of the bathroom, and before I could stop myself, I was standing in the small room and looking down at my angel.

And _my God_, she was breathtaking. I caught a glimpse of a beautiful dusty rose nipple before I tore my gaze away from it and used all of the goddamn control I had left to just stare at her face. And nowhere else.

_Christ, I'm a pervert. _

She may be my Bella but she's a fucking five year old right now.

_Well, as long as I'm going to hell, I may as well do it thoroughly..._

"Yes, love...what do you need?" I asked in a light tone with a smile, giving nothing away of my inner turmoil.

She had been playing with her soap crayons, and I could see the words 'I love my Edward' written in green soap on the tiled wall, next to Isabella's name, written in pink soap. She had an adorable smile on her face and was currently playing with her mermaid Ariel doll, dunking it's head under the water and lifting it back up, rubbing some soap in it's hair, then dunking it in the water again. She looked up at me and started sucking on those pretty pink lips.

"Edward, my marker hearts all gone?" she asked, referring to her cheekbones.

They weren't gone but I could tell that she had tried to scrub them off. Her Crayola beard and mustache were history, though, so that's a plus.

"No, baby...not quite," I informed her.

She dipped her hand into the bubbles and a second later came back with a wet and soapy wash cloth. She bunched it up and put it on her cheek, making slow rubbing motions in an effort to scrub the marker off. She wasn't pressing nearly hard enough and I knew that if I didn't help, then she'd be in here all night.

And we just couldn't have that because she needed to drink that protein shake that was on the nightstand waiting for her at this very moment. I would do this for her health. Yes. Her health depended on me helping her with those smudgy purple hearts on that soft, smooth skin on her beautiful face.

So, yes...to save us both some time and trouble, I would need to do this for her. I would need to take that warm, soapy wash cloth and dip it into the bathwater that was currently permeated with the delicious essence of my naked Bella, and I would need to put it to her rosy cheek and rub it in circular motions...firm but gentle motions...until all of the marker was off.

Because she couldn't do it. She needed my help. It was the _noble_ thing to do.

Not perverted.

At all.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts, and reached out to her. "Here, baby...let me do it," I suggested softly.

She smiled and handed me the washcloth as I sat down on the edge of the bathtub. I dipped it back into the warm water and quickly removed my hand, trying not to tempt myself any further. I didn't want to do something that I _knew_ I would regret.

_This is Isabella...my baby...my five year old...she's **five** years old...Five. Years. Old._

She began humming and making her doll swim around the water and fly above the bubbles, while I wringed out the excess water from the cloth. This was good. If she kept acting like that...like a child, then it would distract my mind enough to just get the task done and get the hell out of this room. It was working so far...so I placed the wet cloth to her soft cheek and told her to hold still while I started the circular rubbing motions.

"Edward, my dolly likes playing in the bath. She likes to swim and play in the bubbles, just like me," she said conversationally while I worked on her left cheek.

"Well, that's nice...are you two having fun?" I asked, trying to concentrate on her words and not that pink, suckable little nipple that was peaking out at me above the bubbles right now.

She nodded. "Yah-huh, we were playing the little mermaid, and she was Ariel and I was her bestest friend and we went swimmin all day long in the water and singin the songs from the movie that she's in," she said, before she got an excited look in her eye. "Did you know she was in a _movie_? She's famous! And I'm her bestest friend, so I'm famous too," she pointed out smugly.

"Yes, you are..." I murmured, playing along and dipping the cloth back into the water.

I brought it back up to her cheek and rinsed those purple smudges away, before switching to her right cheek.

"I made you a shake for after your bath, Isabella," I informed her when she got quiet again, her fingers twirling around the doll's hair.

She beamed up at me. "Chocolate?" she asked hopefully.

I smiled, glad that she liked that flavor. "Yes, it's chocolate. Did you wash your hair?"

She nodded and kept twirling the doll's hair, but I knew that she was lying. Only the tips of her hair were wet, so I knew she hadn't washed it. I really only asked her, to remind her that it needed to be done, but then she went and nodded her head...lying to me.

"Isabella, did you wash you hair?" I asked her again, just to make sure...she may have been concentrating on her doll and not my question at the moment.

She nodded again, and I stopped rubbing the wash cloth on her cheek. The purple smudges were all gone now, so I quickly dipped the rag back into the water and brought it back to her cheek to rinse away the marker's residue.

"Are you lying to me?" I asked her.

She tore her attention away from the doll that she had been twirling and flipping around, to look up at the tone of my voice. She saw the slightly stern look I was giving her and started to suck on that bottom lip as she shook her head 'no'.

I sighed.

_Is lying going to be a problem with her?_

"I think you are. I'm going to ask you one more time, Isabella. Did. You. Wash. Your. Hair?" I asked slowly, my tone back to being soft so that I didn't scare her.

She was quick to answer. "I washed my dolly's hair. See?" she said, and held up the doll for me to look at it's red hair.

"No, baby...I need to know if you washed _your_ hair," I clarified.

She shook her head and sniffled a little. "Am I in trouble?" she asked with worried eyes.

"No, but you need to wash all of that pretty hair before you can get out of the tub, baby girl. Put Ariel down for now," I told her.

She sat her doll down on the edge of the tub next to me. "You gotta watch my friend," she told me.

I picked the doll up and kept it in my hand, then repeated, "Wash your hair, angel."

She reached for the bottle of shampoo that was sitting at the corner of the tub and handed it to me.

I handed it back and reminded her, "You're a big girl, Isabella. Wash your own hair."

She handed it right back and shook her head sheepishly. "Not allowed...I get the soapies in my eyes, and it makes me cry," she informed me.

I looked at the damn shampoo bottle for a second and sighed, resigned to my fate. I would have to wash her hair. I swallowed back the venom that had pooled in my mouth from her wet scent and my desire for it and her body. I put the doll down, back in the tub so that I could have use of both of my hands.

She immediately reached for it, but I stopped her.

"Uh-uh Isabella, no...I told you to leave her alone for now," I reminded her. She pouted but I ignored it, and said simply, "Get your hair wet for me, baby."

I looked away then, to put some shampoo in my hand, as she lay back to dip her head under the water, getting all of those luscious brown locks _nice_ and _wet _and fucking _ready_ for me.

_Get your mind out of the gutter, Cullen._

Right.

When she came back up out of the water, she squinted her eyes and wiped the water away from her face and eyes. When she opened her eyes again, she smiled up at me.

"S'all wet now," she told me, then turned around to face the wall so that her back was to me, and I started the process of washing her hair.

I wiped the shampoo in my palms onto her silky soft hair, and rubbed it in. Once all her strands were coated in the soapy substance, I gathered it all in my hands and started to lather it up. Once all of the bottom locks were soapy, I moved to the top, gently running my fingers along her hair and parting it so that I could start to massage the soap into her scalp.

"Edward, can Ariel come to Never Never Land with us?" Isabella asked into the quiet of the room, completely interrupting my concentration on the task that I was clearly enjoying entirely too much. I must have been washing her hair for eight minutes now.

I was suddenly melancholy at the thought of having to stop, but reminded myself that I could play with her hair again, and very soon, when I would brush it out for her before she laid down to go to sleep.

"She sure can, baby."

"Are the soapies done cleanin my hair now?" she asked

"Yes," I informed her and stopped my fingers that had been using the excuse of washing her hair just to be able to play in it. "Go ahead and rinse, sweetie."

She nodded and laid back down in the water to rinse the shampoo out of her hair. I stood from the tub's ledge then, and went over to the sink to rinse the soap off my hands. She lifted her head out of the water after a minute, and after she wiped the water from her closed eyes with two tiny fists, she opened them back up and gasped for a breath of air.

"Are you okay, Isabella?"

She nodded and blushed. "Wanna be done now, Edward."

"Okay."

"Kay, can I be done now?" she asked.

"Yeah baby, you can be done now," I answered and grabbed her white fluffy towel from the towel wrack. "Isabella, _wait_ until I'm back in the bedroom to get out of the bathtub, okay?"

She nodded.

I set the towel down on the counter. "Okay, when you get out, wrap this towel around you and then come into the bedroom," I instructed before quickly walking out of the bathroom.

She followed soon after, dripping a trail of water behind her. I furrowed my brow at the water, then realized that it was because Isabella didn't wring her hair out, or try to dry herself at all. I walked up to her small form enveloped in that white towel, and gave her button nose a quick kiss, then told her to stay put.

I went into the bathroom and grabbed a small towel, then came back into the room and proceeded to wrap it around Isabella's soaking wet hair. Once all of her thick, wet hair was in the towel, I squeezed on it, trying to do a half-ass job of wringing the excess water out of her hair. I felt the towel dampen quickly, so I removed it to find that it had worked.

_Because I'm a fucking genius._

Her hair was only slightly damp now, so I took that same towel and wiped up the little droplets of water trailing from Isabella all the way back to the bath tub.

Isabella was still standing there in a towel that practically covered her from her neck to just below her knees. She had it wrapped around her shoulders like a blanket, clutching the ends with her fists, and I noticed that she was starting to shiver. She was cold.

_Get her fucking pajamas, genius._

"Hold on, baby..." I told her, then went to the dresser.

"Want my jammies, Edward..." she mumbled as her teeth began to chatter.

I grabbed the first thing I saw, which was a little blue cotton night gown with short sleeves and yellow stars on it. I held it out so that I could look at it, and read the 'Wish Upon A Star' logo on the front, then came to the conclusion that it was both cute and would come down to just above her knees, so I decided that she could wear that and then went in search for a pair of panties. I found a pair of powder blue cotton ones that would match the gown perfectly, so I chose those.

I laid them on the bed, then looked back at her. "Isabella I'm going to clean up the bathroom and drain the tub. You stay in here, finish drying off, then get dressed in those pajamas," I told her, pointing to the clothes I had just put on the bed. "Alright?"

She nodded, so I walked back into the bathroom and saw that it was a mess. I reached into the bath water and unplugged the tub drain, setting the plug up on the ledge of the bathtub, then I grabbed another towel and laid it down on the floor, and wiped up the water that had spilled over the ledge from Isabella playing and splashing around. I turned on the tub's faucet and let it rinse out the bubbles that were still on the floor of the tub, then grabbed her water doll, and ran it under the faucet, getting all of the bubbles off of it. I didn't want it coated in soap scum the next time she wanted to play with it. When I was done rinsing off the doll and the tub's floor, I shut the water off and dried the doll off with a hand towel, then I gathered up the five soap crayons that lay haphazardly on the floor, and put the toys back in the cabinet below the sink.

I heard Isabella's giggles as she called out, "Edward, my jammies got pretty stars on 'em."

"I know, baby," I told her and grabbed her hairbrush off of the counter, then walked back into the bedroom. I smiled, knowing that I could brush her hair any minute now.

She was jumping on the bed when I went over to the dvd shelf to get back to the task of picking out a movie. I had been distracted from it by Isabella's bath earlier. I held the brush in front of me and fingered the bristles while I stared at the movies, and tried to make a decision. Finally, I decided that it didn't really matter because she would be falling asleep soon anyway, so I just grabbed one and saw that I had randomly selected The Emperor's New Groove. When I put the movie in the dvd player and heard it starting up, I turned away from the TV and headed back towards the bed. I had to convince Isabella that it was time to get ready for bed...not time to play and jump and bounce around.

Just as I was about to open my mouth to tell her that it was time to lay down and relax, she froze and immediately stopped jumping. I stilled for a second, wondering...did I really just say that out loud?

_No..._

I looked at Isabella, observing her for a second. She was rigid still and had her wide chocolate eyes glued to my hand. When I started to smell a hint of adrenaline in her blood, I knew that something was wrong. I looked down at the hand she was currently staring at, and realized that it was the one holding her hairbrush.

She doesn't want her hair brushed?

_Well, that's fucking disappointing._

I sighed and resigned myself to the fact that I wouldn't get to enjoy playing with her hair tonight before telling her, "Isabella, it's time to relax and lay down for bed, baby. No more jumping tonight. Okay?"

She minutely nodded, but didn't make a move to relax her stance, or sit down. And her gaze was still fixed on the hairbrush.

After a few seconds, I tried again. "Okay sweetie, it's time to lay down and watch your movie. You can drink your shake while you watch it..." I trailed off.

She wasn't looking at me, but at the damn hairbrush. Experimentally, I moved my hand to the left and saw that her fearful eyes followed it warily.

I sighed. "Alright, Isabella...what's wrong?"

"Am I in trouble?" she asked in a soft whisper.

"No, just lay down for your movie, baby...I'm getting tired of repeating myself."

She still hadn't made a move to sit down from her standing position on the bed, and she still hadn't looked at me. I looked at the clock and noticed that it was just after 11pm. We needed to get this show on the road if I wanted her to take that sleeping pill before midnight.

"Isabella," I said her name in a slightly firm tone, hoping that it would knock her out of whatever trance she was in and she would finally look at me.

It worked and when her wide eyes landed on me, I was suddenly very concerned. Why is she scared of her fucking hairbrush? I moved my hand, and as I predicted, she flinched.

_Oh. Ohhh..._

Remembering her asking if she was in trouble a second ago, I asked hesitantly as I held up the brush, "Do you think I'm going to hit you with this?"

She looked at the brush once again, then back into my eyes before silently nodding.

"No," I stated with conviction, then softened my tone and gaze. "No one is going to hit you, Isabella," I assured her.

"You spank me?"

"With my hand...and only when you're naughty and break a rule," I clarified slowly for her.

I did not like the idea of anyone hitting her with an object. But it had obviously fucking happened. Because she was scared of a goddamn hairbrush.

I sighed, then held up the brush again, emphasizing, "No one will ever hit you with this. Or with _anything_, for that matter. And no one will ever spank you, but me. Do you understand, angel?"

She nodded and relaxed visibly, seeming to believe the truth in my words. She sat down on the bed then, and grabbed her protein shake off of the nightstand, and started to drink it through the straw.

Once her gaze was fixed onto the TV, I came over and sat up against the headboard. I spread my legs out into a V around her and reached forward for Isabella's waist, then pulled her back until she was flush against my chest. She giggled and kept the straw in her mouth, sucking all that protein down like a good girl while I kissed the top of her head and began lightly stroking the brush through her long hair.

She hummed and mumbled around her straw, "Tickles my hair, Edward."

"Does it?" I asked softly in her ear.

She nodded and I continued my brush strokes, keeping an eye on the progress that she was making with her shake. When she was done, she held it out to me, so I took it off her hands and set the empty cup down on the nightstand.

I grabbed her medicine and glass of water then, and said, "Angel, you need to take this, okay?"

She turned her head to look down at the tiny pill in my hand. "Don't wanna..." she mumbled while shaking her head, then turned her eyes back towards the screen.

"Yes, Isabella."

"No, Edward."

_Damn it, **now** she wants to be difficult?_

"Isabella, you need to put this in your mouth and swallow it, sweetie," I gently prodded.

"Don't wanna Edwaaard..." she whined.

"Isabe-" I started, but she shushed me.

_Shushed me?_

If I wasn't getting so frustrated, I would have laughed.

"Shhh, Edward..." she said softly while putting a finger to her lips, then twisted around to whisper in my ear, "The emperor is fixin to get his groove back," she told me, referring to her Emperor's New Groove movie.

I chuckled then, I couldn't help it.

_She will take the medicine if you ask Carlisle to come in and tell her to_ Alice thought to me, clearly seeing the decision I had almost made a second ago, since Isabella was refusing me.

"Carlisle, I need you to get her to take this pill," I whispered at vampire frequency.

Five seconds later, there was a knock on the door and Isabella's head shot over in that direction to see Carlisle walking in. Her breath hitched, and she twisted around so that instead of her back being against my chest, her side was now pressed against it. After grabbing a fistful of the front of my shirt, she turned her head and buried her face into the crook of my shoulder.

Carlisle had paused his steps and I didn't know what to do so I just ran my fingers lightly along her spine in a comforting gesture and waved Carlisle over. When he was standing beside the bed next to us, he spoke up.

"Isabella..." he called softly, trying to coax her out of her hiding spot in my shoulder.

She didn't budge, so I moved my shoulder a bit and used my other hand to grab her chin and lift her gaze up to me. I decided that she had to stop being so shy around my family. She was supposed to be starting therapy sessions in the next day or so, and I knew that her timidness would only hinder her progress. So I made sure that she was keeping eye contact with me, then I spoke in a serious tone.

"Isabella, don't be rude," I admonished her.

She started sucking on her bottom lip and nodded, keeping her eyes on me.

"Carlisle came to see you," I informed her in the same tone, but made sure to keep my embrace firm around her waist, and kept up my light caressing fingers to calm her.

She looked over at him with a questioning gaze, as if to say 'what do you want'.

He smiled at her warmly and kept up his bedside manner as he asked, "Isabella, are you a big girl?"

She quirked a small smile and nodded hesitantly.

"Well that's good, because big girls take their medicine when they're supposed to. Can you show us that you're a big girl, Isabella? Will you take your medicine?" he asked.

I knew he had tricks up his sleeve from working in the pediatrics ward at the hospital.

I smiled at Isabella. "Go on baby, take your medicine," I encouraged in a persuading tone.

She kept her gaze on him for a few seconds longer before looking back at me and reaching for the pill in my hand. She put it in her mouth, then sipped some water out of the cup Carlisle had given her. When she handed the cup back to him, he gave her a beaming smile.

"Good job," he congratulated her.

I kissed her cheek. "Good girl."

She smiled and whispered to us, "I'm a big girl, huh..."

Carlisle nodded in agreement as I confirmed, "Yes you are, angel."

Now that the moment was over, Isabella got quiet again and kept staring at Carlisle. She sucked on her bottom lip before switching to the top, then stopping completely.

"Do you know Daddy?" Isabella blurted out.

He shook his head and stated softly, "No..."

Isabella tightened her grip on my shirt and laid her head down on my shoulder, but kept her penetrating stare fixed on Carlisle.

"Why do you got yellow hair, then?" she asked.

Carlisle smiled. "I was born with it, sweetie."

"Do you got any tattoos?"

"No..." he replied slowly.

"Do you got piercings on your dick?" she asked then.

Carlisle furrowed his brow as we simultaneously wondered where this odd line of questioning had come from. He shook his head, and waited for the next question.

"Do you got babies?"

He nodded, automatically thinking of me, Alice, Jasper, Rosalie and Emmett as his children.

"Do you give 'em owwies?"

"No, sweetheart, I don't hurt them," he assured her in a calm voice and sat down on the bed next to us.

She scooted her form closer to my body, keeping her grip tight on my shirt and her stare fixed on Carlisle. I was beginning to think we were getting to the bottom of _why_ she was nervous around him.

"Do you got any kitties?"

"No."

"Do you got puppies?"

"No."

"How come? Did you kill them?"

"No, Isabella...I just don't have any pets," he informed her, trying to convince her that he wasn't like the men that she had most likely associated with Jim and, more specifically, men with 'yellow hair'.

Isabella seemed to be lost in thought for a minute before she spoke again. "I saw this lady with yellow hair downstairs today. She hit the big man. She's mean," she informed us in a confidential whisper.

"Her name is Rosalie, and she was only playing, Isabella...she didn't hit him in the way that you mean it," Carlisle tried to explain, but she shook her head.

"Marie told me she is not our friend and I believe her b'cuz she hit that big man and she's got ugly yellow hair," she reasoned, then added, "She's a meanie."

He sighed, resigned to her belief in Marie's words. Of course Marie would tell Isabella that...Marie _hates_ Rosalie.

_Great_.

"How about we talk more about that at another time, hmm?" he asked her and stood from the bed when she yawned.

She nodded and nuzzled her head into my shoulder some more. "Kay...I'ma cuddle with my Edward now. Bye," she dismissed him.

He nodded. "Goodnight," he said as he walked out of the room.

I laid down and tucked Isabella into my side. She would clearly be falling asleep soon, because she kept yawning.

She laid her head down on my chest, stuck her thumb in her mouth, and looked back over to her movie. I lightly ran my fingers through her hair, along the soft skin of her bare arms, and all around her back in different patterns...usually spelling out her name or the words 'I love you' on her back with my finger tip.

Nine minutes later, Isabella's limp form was asleep, pressed up against my body, so I slowly removed that thumb from her mouth and found myself breathing a sigh of relief that I had made it through another day, unscathed.

Things were going pretty well, in my opinion...well, as well as could be expected. We learned of Marie's side job of being a drug dealer and I quickly squashed the possibility of that _ever_ happening again, so I felt peaceful, knowing that she would stay safe since I am shielding her from the ugly world of toxic powder and narcotics now. I also learned that I can handle her tantrums just fine with well practiced restraint so that I don't lash out at her in my anger. Bella's court fine would be taken care of in the morning, and we learned quite a few things about Isabella too. About her automatic writing ability, her unique handwriting, her amazing ability to draw, her fear of being spanked with an inanimate object, her aversion to people with blonde hair, and also...she is coming out of her shell and starting be more independent by learning to take baths on her own.

I smiled and kissed my angel's warm, smooth forehead. I couldn't wait for her to open those chocolate eyes again. I wanted to get started on a brand new day with my girls.


	20. Purity

EPOV

At just after four in the morning, she started to stir in her sleep. I knew that it was too early for her to wake up, so I just shushed her and kept my fingers' trailing slowly along her back. She was restless though, and after eight minutes of sighing and moaning sleepily, she let her eyes open.

When she looked up at me, I smiled…not really sure who I was greeting right now. The past two nights, when Bella had woken up in the middle of the night, she hadn't been herself.

"Gotta go potty," she mumbled sleepily and looked up at me, as if she was asking for permission.

"Yeah, baby…go on," I told Isabella softly.

She lifted her head off of my shoulder and after she untangled herself from the sheets and blanket, she hopped down off of the bed. She turned to look back at me and rubbed her tired eyes.

"Edwaaard…don't like the daaark," she whined.

I reached over to the nightstand and clicked on the small lamp for her. She squinted her bleary eyes against the new light, then turned to walk over to the bathroom. She hummed Twinkle Twinkle Little Star while she was in there, and after I heard the water to the sink shut off, she came over to the bed.

I expected her to lay down and cuddle back into my side, but instead she stood and started jumping all around her side of the bed.

"Isabella, no baby…it's still time to sleep."

She had only slept for four hours. That wasn't enough time and she should still be very tired right now.

"Nuh-uh Edward, s'time to play," she said with a small giggle.

_Useless fucking sleeping pill._

"Isabella, stop jumping," I said, slightly more firmer this time.

She folded her legs under herself mid-air, so that when she landed, she wasin a seated position on her knees. Her long hair bounced one last time and flowed around her face as she looked at me with a questioning gaze.

"How come?"

"Because you still need to sleep-" I started but she cut me off.

"Nooo, not tiiired…" she whined.

_Yeah, the whining isn't helping your case, hun._

She yawned.

_And neither is that yawn._

I suddenly got an idea. I wasn't sure if it would work, but I could try.

"C'mere Isabella, I want to cuddle…" I said, trying to persuade her to lay back down.

"How come you wanna cuddle, Edward? You sad?"

"No…"

"You hurt?"

"No, baby."

She shook her head a little. "S'not time to cuddle, it's time to play," she informed me matter-of-factly.

Then she yawned again.

I sighed. "Isabella, you need to sleep a little longer."

"Noooo…" she whined.

Again.

Then she went and got off the bed.

"Where are you going?" I asked her when she started walking away.

"My dolly is awake, Edward. She wants to play too," Isabella informed me, as if it should have been obvious, then she bent down to pick up her new doll and the bag of accessories for it.

When she climbed back onto the bed, baby doll in tow, she sat down by my side, then positioned the doll so that it was laying in her lap.

She looked at me and asked, "How come you're still laying down, Edward?"

"Because I'm still tired and I want to cuddle with you," I replied, keeping up my charade in hopes that she would forget the damn doll and go back to sleep.

She rubbed her eyes, giving away her still-sleepy state, and asked, "Edward, wanna play house with me and my dolly?"

I sighed, not really knowing what this game consisted of, but I was interested in everything that had to do with Isabella, so I gave in and nodded. "For a bit baby, but then you need to get some more sleep."

She whined again. No words, just this pitiful noise in the back of her throat while keeping her mouth closed.

_Okay…okay, yeah that's going to get annoying…and fucking confusing._

Why do kids do that? Make all these pitiful little noises, as if they are physically hurt, but they are really only trying to get what they want…by making those noises. It doesn't make any fucking sense. Why would that high pitched pathetic little noise get her anything she wants?

And so the mystery of Isabella Swan continues…

"Stop it," I scolded in a soft voice.

She did, then looked at me questioningly.

"Isabella, whining like that won't get you anything that you want, it will never help you get your way," I explained gently. "Do you understand? When you make those little whimpering noises, the first thing that I think of is that you're hurt in some way. I don't like thinking that. And you are obviously fine, so stop it. If I hear you whining again, causing me needless worry, you're going to be in trouble."

"How?" she asked, opening the doll's accessory bag.

"What do you mean, baby? How what?"

"How am I gonna be in trouble? You gonna fuck my mouth?" she asked curiously, then put one of those play bottles to her doll's mouth.

"Holy shit," I heard Emmett say from somewhere in the house.

_I concur._

I was stunned into speechlessness for a few seconds by her casually asking me if I'm going to 'fuck her mouth'…for punishment.

_What. The. Fuck._

When I didn't answer her, she looked away from her doll into my eyes. I just shook my head, not being able to trust my voice at the moment.

Flashes of doing that to my Bella went through my mind unbidden, and I had to bite back a groan from the…just fucking _perfection_ of all the glorious images, as I was bombarded with the intense feeling of lust that was suddenly flowing through my body. I had to swallow back the venom that had instantly pooled in my mouth.

This is Isabella right now. Five year old Isabella. For fuck's sake, why does she have to say things like that? It is so unbelievably disturbing that my five year old would ask that, but when said five year old is in the body of my very adult, very sexy Bella, it makes my uncontrollable lust for her body tainted, and I am filled with shame that I have that reaction to those words coming out of her mouth.

"How?" she asked again.

"Don't worry about it, Isabella," I said a little brusquely, my voice unexpectedly rough and husky from the lust…and anger.

_Fucking disgusting. _

I should not be turned on right now.

I cleared my throat. "Just take my advice and stop whining. You're a big girl and big girls don't whine…babies do," I pointed out, relieved that my voice was honey-smooth again.

She yawned then, and I continued on. "And Isabella…you," I hesitated, unsure of how to word this. "You don't need to worry about that anymore," I assured her.

Her head shot up from giving her doll a change of clothes. "About what? Being in trouble?" she hedged with a smile.

"No…no baby, you still need to follow the rules _and_ worry about the consequences of breaking them. But…" I trailed off and sighed.

_Just spit it out, Cullen._

"You don't need to worry about what you just said happening to you anymore. At all," I told her.

"Oh…" she said slowly as realization seemed to dawn on her. "I don't gotta worry about you fucking my mouth?"

"Jesus Christ," I muttered in a whisper, before I firmly answered, "No."

"Kay," she said lightly with a shrug, then turned her attention back to her doll's outfit.

Why did her asking me that catch me so completely off guard? I mean, yeah…a child asking that question is not normal, but I have to face it…Isabella is anything but normal. I have to keep in mind from now on that she is, indeed, a disturbed little girl, so that I am more prepared to handle these little outbursts in the future. It's just that being around her and spending time with her yesterday had left a lasting impression on me…my experience with her has told me that she's very shy…very sweet…very innocent.

But, after her automatic writing, willingness to be naked in front of anyone, and her odd questions, I am coming to the realization that she had that innocence stolen from her. And now it just simply does not exist anymore. I guess I just have to get past the shock of it all…that my Bella was broken when she was still just a baby. Isabella is proof of that. I find myself growing wary of all the possibilities of other disturbing things that my little Isabella is capable of saying…or doing.

I was interrupted out of my reverie by Isabella handing me her doll, dressed in a completely different outfit. "Edward, I got my dolly dressed for the new day…pretty, huh?" she asked me shyly.

"Yes, baby," I murmured in response. "You chose a pretty outfit for your baby doll."

She yawned again. "Edward?" she mumbled, as her eyes began to droop.

I internally smiled, knowing that she was finally giving in to sleep. "Yes, Isabella?" I asked very softly, setting the quiet mood for a second bedtime.

"Can me and my dolly cuddle witchyouuu?" she whispered, and rubbed her right eye before tiredly giving another sigh.

I nodded. "Yes, c'mere baby," I said, reaching for her.

She tucked her doll under her arm then, and let herself be enveloped into my arms. Once her head was back in it's spot on my chest, she mumbled against my cotton shirt, "Can we watch my sleepy beauty movie?" she asked, referring to Sleeping Beauty.

I smiled at the irony, remembering how I always refer to her as that. I kissed her forehead. "Yeah baby, let me up and I'll go put it on for us."

She nodded and sat back up. She watched with bleary eyes as I got off the bed and went to the dvd shelf. I put The Emperor's New Groove away, then grabbed Sleeping Beauty off of the shelf and stuck it in. After pressing play on the dvd player, I strolled back over to the bed and laid down.

I laughed when Isabella pounced on me, nuzzling my neck with some intensity and giving my waist a strong squeeze with her thin arm that she had wrapped around me. After a second, she loosened her grip and relaxed, whispering, 'mine' with a possessiveness that always caught me a little off guard, but I loved nonetheless. I couldn't seem to wipe the smug grin off of my face as she closed her eyes and slipped back into unconsciousness just as the movie's beginning credits started rolling.

At 7:15, my girl was still tucked tightly into my side, her heart rate calm, her breathing slow. She was sleeping peacefully and I was very happy about that. Jasper came in to let me know that he was headed out to take care of Bella's court fine, then him and Alice would check out a few places for a tire-swing. He said that if they couldn't find one, then they would just pick up the needed supplies for one. Like a fucking tire and some rope.

_So damn simple. _

I should have thought of that yesterday while we were out.

At 9:03, Bella's stomach started to growl, letting the entire house know that she was hungry, but still asleep. Esme let me know that she would start on breakfast for her, knowing that the hunger pangs would wake her up soon enough. I saw through her mind's eye that she was making some French Toast and Emmett was slicing a banana and two strawberries to go with it. I whispered a quiet thank you to them as my sleeping beauty started to stir in my arms once again.

She opened her eyes and when she saw me, she smiled. "What's that mm-mmm, yummy smell, Edward? I'm fucking starving," she said, her voice thick with sleep.

"Esme is making you some French toast, sweetheart. It should be done in a minute," I let Marie know, then kissed her forehead.

"Hmmm…" she hummed. "Your mom is such a delicious twist between Betty Crocker and June Cleaver, I fucking love it," she said, then kissed me on my cheek. "Love you, Edward…" she mumbled, starting to get out of bed.

I watched her get untangled from the blankets and crawl on all fours to the edge of the bed, before hopping down.

"Love you too."

"Love you more," she insisted with a wink before she skipped off to the bathroom.

I chuckled as she closed the door behind her, then I got myself out of bed. I picked up Isabella's doll and put it in the plastic basinet on the floor by the little corner 'office' that I had set up.

It was a small desk with a comfortable leather chair pushed flush against it. There was a laptop, and a few small office supplies, along with some paper for the printer next to the laptop. Isabella's drawing book was on top of the desk, while all of her coloring utensils and coloring books were in the bottom drawer, at her disposal and ready for use.

After I put the doll away, I went back to the bed and gathered up all of it's accessories, then shoved them back in the small bag and put it in the basinet next to the doll.

Marie came out of the bathroom, hair and teeth brushed, as I was started making the bed. She went over to the dresser and grabbed her new Cupcake Cult tin box, then opened it with a smile. I could see the wheels in her head turning at all the possibilities of the things she could put in there. She closed the lid with a type of reverence, just as I was positioning the last pillow on the bed, then walked over to the closet, and tried to reach the top shelf to put her box up there. The action caused her night gown to ride up the back of her thighs in the process, until I could get a peek at the panties I had chosen for her last night. I could feel venom start to pool into my mouth as my eyes zeroed in on the soft curve of perfection before me.

_Christ, she's got an ass that won't quit. I want to bite it…and lick it…and fucking squeeze-_

I was interrupted from my thoughts when I heard that now familiar whine coming from the back of her throat as she stomped her foot because she couldn't quite reach the shelf. She turned to me with a scowl on her face, before she said petulantly, "I'm too fucking short."

_Too fucking cute._

I chuckled. "Aw…let me see it, baby," I told her while walking over in her direction.

She handed it to me, but not before warning me to be careful with her box, and I placed it up on the shelf for her, fully aware that she wouldn't be able to get it by herself if it was up there. This way, every time she wanted it, I would have to get it for her, thus giving me a chance to make sure there wasn't any secret weed stashed in there.

Once it was on the shelf, I turned back to Marie and kissed her forehead. "Get dressed, love, breakfast is ready," I murmured against her skin.

She grabbed a pair of black loose fitting jeans that I knew would hang low on her hips, and a white tank top with the logo 'Well, La-De-Fucking-Da' written in black text across the chest.

I smiled, thinking how that shirt really was perfect for Marie, in fact - she was probably the one who picked it out when I took Bella clothes shopping on Saturday.

She walked by me then, and slyly grabbed my ass before heading towards the bathroom to get dressed.

While she was in there, I dressed in a pair of jeans and a green button down shirt. A few minutes later, Marie came out of the bathroom, dressed with her hairbrush in hand. She headed over towards the dresser, then proceeded to look for something.

"Edward, where did my Bell put the damn hair ties?" she asked.

"There's a little box of hair ties and clippies that she put in a drawer in the bathroom," I informed her.

"Yeah, well there's like twenty goddamn drawers in your bathroom fit for motherfucking royalty, so therein lies the problem, doll. If I could only fucking find it, that would be awesome, ya know?" she said, tossing the hairbrush onto the dresser with a huff.

"Why do you want the hair ties anyway, baby?" I asked her.

I rarely ever saw Bella with her hair up.

She gazed at me skeptically, "Have you seen this motherfucking _mane_ that my Bell's been sportin lately?" she asked, pulling on a few strands of the silky brown locks that were long enough to flow down to her waist. "It's getting annoying. I want it out of the way. _Jesus Christ_, is it too much to ask for her to go get a goddamn trim every once in a while?" she ranted, then exhaled loudly. "I mean…FUCK!" she yelled, flipping her hair behind her shoulder, and grabbing the hairbrush again before stomping back off towards the bathroom.

I heard drawers opening and slamming closed for a few seconds then. Thirteen slams later, the slamming stopped, so I assumed that she had found them.

I didn't like the idea of my Bella cutting her hair…even if it's only for a trim. I loved her hair. So long, so soft, and _mmmm_ smells so good. I fucking love playing with it.

So, yes…a trim _is_ asking too much.

Marie came out of the bathroom with a black cap facing backwards on her head then. She had pulled all her hair back into a low ponytail, but kept it in a bun/messy ponytail, so that none of the hair fell down past the nape of her neck.

"So much better," Marie quietly muttered with a relieved smile.

I smiled, knowing that her hair tantrum was over, and motioned towards the bedroom door. "Breakfast-" I started, but she cut me off.

"I know, yummy French toast," she said while walking past me and out the door.

She jogged down the steps and I stayed close behind, wary of her falling. If my Bella tried this, she'd have done a face-plant into the banister by now. Marie kept a firm hold on the railing the whole way down though, so that prevented any fatal injury from occurring before the day had even really started.

Marie ignored my family as she kept up her jog all the way to the dining room table. She sat down just as Esme was bringing out her plate of food from the kitchen.

Esme set the plate down on the table in front of Marie's beaming face…then looked to me, clearly hesitant on how to greet Marie as opposed to Bella.

"Mmmm, looks fucking delicious, Esme. Thanks! You're like, the best fucking mom in the whole goddamn world, let me tell you…" she trailed off as she shoved a forkful of butter and syrup covered bread into her mouth. While she was chewing a mouth full of food, she continued on, "I swear to god, it's like an orgasm in your mouth," she said with a moan that did ungodly things to my body.

Emmett's booming laugh trailed out to us from the kitchen and Esme's face lit up with a beaming smile in response to being called 'the best fucking mom in the whole goddamn world'. I smiled as I took my seat next to her, knowing that Marie had just made my mother's day with that comment.

She ate most of her food with a smile on her face and was making conversation with Emmett who had joined us at the table.

"Do you play ball, Em?" Marie asked, stabbing a piece of banana with her fork and slipping it between her teeth.

"Yeah, but we play baseball in our own way…" he said, then went on to explain our games out at the field during thunderstorms.

"I like basketball and soccer," she said after he finished his baseball explanation. "Do you like those?" she asked as her lips puckered up a little at the sweetness of the strawberry she had just popped in her mouth.

"Never really played them," he informed her.

She nodded, then turned to me. "So how are _you_ likin the baby?" she asked, completely changing the subject.

I furrowed my brow. "Isabella?" I clarified.

She rolled her eyes and nodded. "Who the fuck else would it be, Edward? You make it a point to hang out with babies all the time, or something?" she asked with a furrowed brow of her own.

"No…just wondering why you are referring to her as 'the baby'. She's not, she's five," I said.

"Just a goddamn habit, I guess," she said with a shrug. "I mean, she's fucking tiny as hell, and looks extremely young, so I kindly dubbed her the honor of having that fuckawesome nickname," she explained.

"What do you mean…_looks_?" I asked, completely thrown off by Marie describing Isabella's physical features to us.

She rolled her eyes again. "Oh _please_, Edward…you've seen the fucking pictures, you know what Isabella looks like. Speaking of those pictures, you'd better make sure to remind the doc what I told him about showing them to my Bell. The munchkin doesn't seem to give a damn, but my pretty Bell will have a goddamn nervous breakdown over a piece of paper because she's such a fucking drama queen," Marie rambled on as realization dawned on me.

Bella had told me the other day about how when Isabella had started to come around, it was like she could see another little girl there with her. Standing side by side, playing together…a mirrored image of Bella's physical form at five years old. So is that how Marie sees her? Is that how Isabella believes she still looks?

I thought back to those pictures. A very small, very adorable Bella with rosy cheeks, big doe chocolate eyes, and soft brown curls that framed her little face perfectly. Then I remembered yesterday morning, when Carlisle had showed Isabella a picture…how she had giggled and immediately pointed to the image of a young Bella in a pink swim suit, telling us all that it was _her_.

_Fucking hell…_

Will Bella's mind never cease to amaze me?

"So how are you likin the lil brat?" Marie asked me again with a raised eyebrow.

I was quick to answer her this time. "Yes…I love her just like I love you, sweetheart. You two are just completely different, so it gives me different experiences when I'm with you guys individually," I informed her.

She smirked at my somewhat formal sounding answer. "Oh yeah? And how much did you like her _last night_?"

If I could have blushed, I would have been bright red. I thought that she was referring to me helping her in the bathtub, but she interrupted that train of thought by saying, "Christ, that kid's got a fucking mouth on her!" she said with a kind of smugness before continuing almost wistfully, "It makes me proud."

"What?" I breathed out, relieved momentarily that Marie wasn't going to bring up bath time.

"When she asked you if you were going to fuck her mouth," she explained while fighting a smile. "Kodak fucking moment, I swear to God…you should have seen your face," she said, then let her grin break free.

"Yeah…yeah, that was disturbing," I muttered with a slight frown. "Wait, you _saw_ that?" I asked, perplexed.

I knew that she was always aware with Bella…but with Isabella too?

Her face grew serious then. "I see everything, Edward," she said slowly.

I knew that she was just answering my question, but it sort of felt like a warning.

After a few seconds, she added, "And so does Isabella." Then she laughed a bit. "Yeah, me and the tiny terror can see and hear everything…it's my Bell that got the short end of the stick on that shitty deal. She's only around when she's actually here, ya know? She's sees what we want her to see," she said, informing me of what I already knew before she got a contemplative look on her face. "So…wouldn't that mean that this is more my body, than Bell's? Seems I have more fucking control over things…" she trailed off thoughtfully.

I knew it was Bella body, but I didn't know how to explain or respond to that, so I just replied with a shrug and said, "I don't know, love…"

She shook her head a bit and sighed, then flashed her eyes over to Emmett, who had stayed for our conversation, before looking back to me.

She drank the last of her chocolate milk, before she held out her hand and asked with a devilish smirk, "Can I use your fucking phone, you sexy piece of man candy?"

I was slightly caught off guard by that, but wasn't about to tell her 'no'. It was just a phone call, and I was suddenly curious as to who she wanted to call.

"Sure," I said as I placed my silver phone into her upturned palm.

She flipped it open, dialed some numbers and held it up to her ear. I had to control the waves of jealousy that coursed through me when I heard that mutt's voice coming through the line. I didn't think Marie knew I could hear the whole conversation, and I wanted to keep it that way, so I appeared aloof and relaxed as I eavesdropped on her phone call.

"Hey," he answered breathlessly, panting for air.

Because that's what dogs do.

"Hey…are…were you _masturbating_?" she asked, feigning shock, with a that same smirk on her face.

_God, kill me now._

He barked out a laugh, because dogs do that too, then replied, "No! I just got back from my run," he explained.

"Suuuuure," she replied, implying that she didn't believe a word of it. "I call early in the morning, and you pick up, breathing all hot n' heavy into the phone. Jesus Christ, when you answered, I was worried I had accidentally dialed the phone-sex hotline," she told him.

He laughed again.

_Goddamn it._

"Anyway, come over and play some ball with me," she said.

"Aw, I can't…you know how Sam is these days with your precious Cullens back in town," he said.

"Well, tell Sam to take a break and go get fucking laid already, 'cause you gotta come play some ball with me," she suggested.

"Can't Bells, I'm sorry…" he said, sounding really bummed out while I was internally smiling.

"Goddamn it Jake, it's me…Marie," she informed him.

"Okay, well shit…sorry, I can't _Marie,_" he repeated.

"It's 'cause you fucking suck. What about Seth or Emily or Chelsea or John or Roger or-"

_Who the hell are these people? Seth? John? Roger?_

"I'll tell Seth to call you. Hey…I didn't recognize the caller ID, whose phone are you using?" he asked.

"My Edward's phone," she told him with a smile on her face.

"_Why_ are you over there?" he asked with an accusatory tone.

_Because she fucking **belongs** to me._

She got a defiant look on her face. "Because I _want_ to be and I _live_ here. Why? What the fuck is it to you?" she asked with an accusatory tone of her own.

I smiled at her and she saw it, winking at me.

"What about Charlie?" he asked, sounding surprised.

"Charlie can eat a dick. That motherfucker doesn't give a shit about me, you know that. Ever since he sank his cock into that whore on your reservation, it's like he doesn't even have a kid anymore. So. Fuck. Charlie. Anywayyyyssss….."

"Damn…" he said quietly.

"Whatever," was Marie's clever response.

"Look, honey…I gotta go. Sam-" he started but she cut him off.

"Yeah okay, just have Seth call Edward's phone about playing some ball and while you're at it, tell Sam that I said he can kiss my white, naked ass…motherfucker never lets you have any play time with me anymore," she said, sounding slightly bummed now.

"Yeah…sorry, again. Call me whenever though, if I don't answer just leave a message. And I'll try to make it out there sometime soon…I miss you," he said.

"Miss you too," Marie mumbled sadly.

"Bye, missy Marie."

She giggled. "Bye jackass Jacob."

He chuckled, then Marie flipped the phone closed and handed it back to me.

"What do you want me to do with this plate?" she asked me.

"Leave it," I told her, knowing that Esme loved doing things like dishes and laundry.

She shrugged. "Kay," she muttered, then got up and walked to the door leading out to the garage. She stepped out into the garage, then came back in less than a minute later, holding her basketball on her hip, and walked up to me with a smile. "Wanna play?" she asked, tossing the ball back and forth between her hands, then making it spin in place on her pointer finger while she stared at me, waiting for my reply.

"Sure, babe."

We went out through the back doors, and Marie immediately started dribbling the ball once we were on the pavement below the hoop that I had set up for her last night. She threw the ball, landing it inside the hoop, then caught the ball and tossed it to me. I dribbled a bit while she walked over to the outdoor stereo system setup by the porch, and turned on the radio, so we had some music to play to. Bow Wow's 'Fresh Azimiz' started flowing through the weather-proof speakers, as I made my shot into the hoop easily. The next song was Katy Perry's 'I Kissed A Girl' and Marie smiled at it, then sang along with a subtle little swing in her hips, but never slowing down her game.

_Mmm, she's so fucking sexy without even trying._

We continued on for the next half hour, just dribbling and shooting hoops…no actual game, and we didn't speak much, just enjoyed the activity and listened to the radio. Well, _she_ enjoyed the activity, it was just another mundane human thing to me, but I enjoyed watching her enjoy herself. I could tell she liked playing basketball a lot. She was skilled in her dribbling, lay-ups and shooting the far-off shots into the hoop. When her heart rate raised a bit, I could tell that she enjoyed it even more. I knew her muscles would be feeling a slight burn and she would be taking deeper breaths from the slight excursion of the activity. All of this let me know that Marie enjoys exercise. Maybe I could get her a gym membership…or, we could have a home gym installed for her. That would be very beneficial to her health and weight gain goal, and she would love it. I just have to talk to Esme about that possibility…

"What is it?" I heard Isabella's soft voice ask from beside me, making sure to enunciate all of her T's as usual.

I turned to see what she was looking at. There was a grasshopper on a bush near Esme's garden by the house. Isabella was pointing at it and had a curious look on her face. I set the basketball down and walked up by her side.

"Grasshopper," I answered softly.

"It gonna hurt us?" she asked.

"No, grasshoppers can't hurt you," I assured her.

"Bees can," she informed me.

"I know, they can sting you and that hurts, huh baby?"

"They can kill you when you're lergic like me," she said.

"You're allergic to bee stings?" I asked, wondering why I never knew this about Bella before.

I made a mental note to keep her away from the path of every single bee on the planet from now on.

"Uh-huh," she answered with a nod. "Are you lergic?" she asked me.

"No, baby…I'm not allergic."

She turned to face me then, and looked up at me. She started sucking on those pink lips and kept on it for twenty-three seconds before she finally asked me what had been on her mind.

"Edward…?" she hedged, slowly.

"Yes, Isabella?"

"Where's Mommy?" she whispered to me.

_Shit…_

"She's out of town sweetheart," I said the first explanation that came to mind. And it wasn't really a lie…

"You're living with me now, is that alright with you?" I asked, making sure she was okay with Bella's new living arrangement.

Her face lit up with a beaming smile. "Yes!"

I chuckled, but then all too soon, she started sucking on those pretty lips again. When she didn't speak up after thirty seconds, I gently coaxed, "What is it, baby?"

"Where's Daddy?" she asked then.

I was proud of how quickly I had reigned in my anger at her innocent question. Just the thought of that fucker sent me into a fury frenzy, making me want to go on a rampage that would put any serial killer to shame.

"Why, sweetheart?" I asked in my smooth, velvet voice, giving nothing away of the anger coursing through my body. The only thing that would give me away right now would be my eyes…I knew that they had turned black.

She shrugged. "He never lets me over to other people's houses. Is he gonna come get me?" she asked, only slightly masking her fear.

"No, you're never going to see him again," I informed her.

She nodded, but I could tell she didn't believe me from the skeptical look in her eyes and the slight tang of adrenaline that was still present in her heavenly scent.

She walked over to the garden then, and plucked a flower up from the ground. She brought it to her face and smelled it, smiling a little at the scent.

"Isabella, don't pick anymore flowers…you need to ask Esme before you can play in her garden," I told her.

"Who's Esme?" she turned to look up at me, then sat down Indian style where she had been standing.

She kept the flower tight in her grip, probably scared that I would take it away from her.

I mirrored her position, and sat down in front of her so we could talk face to face.

"She's my mom," I said, giving her the simple, rehearsed answer I had repeated over the years.

Isabella frowned at that. "Is your mom mean?" she asked.

"No, she's very nice."

"She let people hurt you?"

"No, never."

"Who is your daddy, Edward?" she asked with heavy hesitation.

"Carlisle…he is also your doctor," I reminded her.

She started sucking on her lips and twirling the flower around in her hand, then quietly muttered, "Ugly yellow hair."

She sighed then, and shook her head, "Edward, I don't want a doctor."

"You need one though, baby."

"He gonna give me a shot?" she asked with fearful eyes.

"No, no shots."

"Needles hurt lotts, Edward," she stressed to me with a serious gaze.

"I know, baby."

"Edward?"

"Yes, Isabella?"

"Are you the boss of me?" she asked with genuine curiosity.

_Heh…how do I answer that?_

She should definitely view me as an authority figure…the _one_ and _only_, as well as her own personal possession…and best friend…and confidant…as well as other things. But 'boss of her'?

_Umm…_

I held her curious stare as I started to explain, "Sweetheart…you should definitely listen to me and follow all the rules that I give you. I give them to you with your well-being in mind, because I love you. Very much. And you'll never be in trouble with anyone but me, if you happen to mess up and break a rule." I internally cringed as I said the next part. "Baby…if I ever have to spank you, it's only to remind you of the rules and why you have them," I said then, and sighed before I continued. "But…I'm not 'the boss', per say…I'm your best friend and you can play with me and talk to me…tell me anything and everything. I'm just your's. I belong to you and you belong to me. You understand, love?" I asked, unsure if I had explained our complex relationship correctly so that a five year old could understand it.

She nodded. "Mm-hmm…" she hummed, sucking on her bottom lip.

"Edward?"

"Yes, Isabella?"

"Want my chalk…" she said, referring to the bucket of sidewalk chalk in the garage.

I nodded. "Okay, I'll go get it and be right back," I told her, then stood up and went inside heading for the garage.

When I came back outside, Isabella wasn't by the garden anymore, but over by the trampoline. I smiled as I watched her climb up onto it. She crawled on all fours to the center of it, then stood. It was adorable how she gave a hesitant, little baby jump, before she got more comfortable and started jumping for real.

Soon, she was flying high on each bounce and it was making me fucking nervous. The only thing that kept me from yanking her off of the damn thing and making her stay on solid ground, was my knowledge of my vampire speed should anything happen, and the laughter coming from her mouth.

She was having a lot of fun.

A few minutes later, I saw her flip mid-air. And then she did it again. I felt my muscles tensing, but forced myself to calm down, and simply walk closer to the trampoline, so that it appeared as though I was only watching her have fun, when I would actually be calculating how she would land after each and every single bounce.

The music was still playing around the backyard. Avril Lavigne's 'Hot' flowed around us as I approached the side of the trampoline, bucket of chalk in my hand. She smiled down at me and waved, never stopping all that bouncing. I waved back with the hand holding her chalk so she could see it.

She repeated what she had done this morning, folding her legs under herself midair so that she would be in a seated position when she landed. Once her body wasn't being jostled around anymore by all the bounce vibrations, she giggled and crawled over towards me.

When she got to the edge in front of me, she stood and reached out for me, then said a little breathlessly, "Edward, want down…"

She was too high up though in her standing position, so I suggested, "Bend down a bit, baby…"

She did, and as soon as my hands reached her shoulders, I hooked my hands under them and snatched her off of the trampoline, filled with ridiculous relief that she was off of that death trap now and safe in my arms. She clung to me, so I moved her over to my hip and walked back towards the pavement where Marie and I had played basketball earlier.

I set her back down on her feet, kissed her cheek, and handed her the sidewalk chalk.

"Edward…?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you stay outside with me?" she asked after she knelt down on the hard pavement and opened the bucket.

"Of course, baby. I only ever want to be where you are," I informed her.

"Kay. Can I have a pop?" she asked hopefully, then selected a blue piece of chalk.

"What flavor?" I asked, remembering that she referred to the flavors as colors, because she didn't know the proper names for them yet.

_Adorable_.

"Purple," she said sweetly and snatched the red chalk out of the bucket, clearly done with the blue now.

"Okay, I'll be right back with your _grape_ popsicle," I told her, emphasizing the flavor so that she would hopefully learn the names soon.

I walked back into the house at a leisurely pace, heading for the kitchen. Once I selected a grape freeze pop, I cut the top off with a pair of scissors that we had in a drawer below the counter. I didn't want the popsicle to make her hand cold, so I wrapped a paper towel around it so she could hang onto that instead of the plastic wrapping outside of the frozen treat.

When I walked back outside, over to Isabella, I slowed my steps at the sound of her voice. She was singing…very softly. Every so fucking softly. The sound was not only adorable with it's childish tone, but beautiful also. And her left arm was working furiously on her current art project with her sidewalk chalk on the pavement. She had the intense focus expected of any professional artist, and it momentarily fascinated me. Her soft, relaxed voice betrayed her body's tense and stiff posture though. As I slowly approached her from behind, I got a good look at what she was drawing.

She had used that piece of blue chalk to draw a perfect replica of what a butcher knife would look like, stained and dripping of blood, colored with red chalk. The blood slid down the slope of the weapon and she had little droplets departing from the knife's sharp tip, falling into a small pool of the red liquid Isabella had located about a foot away from the knife. My eyes widened at the picture as I began to take in the soft accapella song casually lilting from Isabella's lips.

Let me see  
All my life has been  
Taken  
This demon  
Haunts me  
They're waiting  
Help me…  
You fuck me up  
I'm gagged and bound  
You pick me up  
When I am down  
I cannot live without them  
I do not live without them  
Hey Daddy  
They are taking me away  
Putting things in me  
My soul  
They're eating  
Please help me…  
They carry this thing inside of me  
Wants to get out  
All it does is scream and shout  
I'm trying not to let them out  
They tell me to hurt myself  
They tell me to hurt myself  
They tell me to hurt myself  
But I don't wanna listen  
You fuck me up  
I'm gagged and bound  
You pick me up  
When I am down  
I cannot live without them  
I do not live without them  
Hey Daddy  
They are taking me  
This demon…

_Something about those lyrics being sung in a child's voice makes it all the more creepy…_

Her voice faded out as she put the red piece of chalk back in the bucket, then she turned to me and smiled, eyeing the freeze pop in my hand and reaching for it. I shook my head a bit to clear my thoughts and walked over to Isabella, choosing to sit by her and talk about this…very disturbing picture and song.

I gave her the most reassuring smile that I could at the moment, considering the conversation we were about to have, and mentally geared myself up for the unavoidable intensity of it.

My main thing was, that while I was usually shocked by the last few things that had happened with Isabella, she was the picture of casual and calm, clearly communicating that she was used to all of this chaos. Her normalcy consisted of torture and sexual innuendoes and racial slurs. It's very normal for her because it's all she's ever known.

So…for this to go well, I would need to act casual and calm too. No matter how awkward or uncomfortable I really felt inside. If she saw that I was okay having these discussions with her, then they would happen more often and her trust in me would build.

I took a deep breath, inconspicuously pulling her savory scent into my lungs, and let my burning throat relax me.

_Okay, here goes…_

"Isabella…" I said softly, while I offered her the frozen stick of sugar that she seemed to be addicted to.

She shyly took it from my hand and immediately brought it to her mouth. "Hmm?" she hummed around her popsicle.

"Tell me about that song you were singing, baby…you have a very pretty voice," I added quickly, figuring a compliment wouldn't hurt in trying to loosen her tongue.

"I hear it in our head lotts. It's a song on one of Bella's music thingys. It's one of my favorites," she informed me with a smile then licked her popsicle again.

I nodded at this new information. I would have to research more of Bella's music collection in the future.

"Do you talk to Bella alot, baby?"

She shook her head and looked very sad all of a sudden. "We use'da be bestest friends, but Mommy didn't like me playin with her anymore. So she sent us to a doctor, like your daddy…and he told Bella to make me go away," she mumbled as her eyes started to glisten with unshed tears.

She sniffled. "And now Bella's all growed-up, and…I'm not," she said with a little whimper as she started to cry.

I sighed, knowing that that was exactly what Carlisle was going to try to do.

"Sorry, baby…" I said sympathetically, then wrapped my hands around her waist to lift her up and bring her over to sit in my lap.

She cuddled into my chest and kissed my cheek before sniffling. "Don't want a doctor, Edward…" she whined, repeating what she had earlier.

"I know, baby," I said quietly and rocked her a little, sitting in our position.

I didn't know what to tell her, and I…I sort of didn't want her to go away, now that she was here. I didn't want Marie to disappear, either.

_Well, shit._

After she let three teardrops fall, she brought her popsicle back to her lips with one last sniffle. "You think I sing pretty?" she asked adorably.

I kissed her forehead and murmured against her warm flesh, "Yes, I do baby," I agreed lightly.

She giggled and lifted her head from my shoulder. She looked at me with amusement in her eyes, then suddenly gave my nose a very gentle Eskimo kiss, giggling again afterwards.

I smiled back at her as she started to suck on her pretty little lips while fighting an adorable smile. I Eskimo kissed her back and murmured softly, "My silly baby girl…"

When our noses parted, she giggled again and my ears loved the tinkling sounds of it. It was officially their new favorite noise. She bit off a piece of popsicle quickly, then gave me another Eskimo kiss with a bright smile on her face. I took advantage of our position then, and started lightly tickling her sides, to which she reacted with more laughter and giggles, trying half-heartedly to avoid my fingers. When I could tell she was out of breath from her laughter, I finally stopped, but she kept that bright smile on her face as she cuddled back into my chest.

"Edward, you're mine…" she reminded me softly once her breathing had calmed down.

"Yes, and you are mine," I agreed.

She nodded in response and I figured that it was time to get back to her picture. Her popsicle was just about gone now, so I waited until she was through to bring it up. She sucked on the last bite and chewed it up, swallowed, then started occupying her fingers by rolling up the protective plastic casing the popsicle had come in.

"Baby…?" I started hesitantly.

I really didn't want to ruin the mood, but…I just had to.

"Huh?"

"Why did you draw that?" I asked gently, while nodding my head in the direction of her picture.

She glanced at it, then looked back at me. "It's the purity knife, Edward. Daddy…umm..." she started, but paused, furrowing her brow.

After a minute, I gently prodded, "Go on, baby."

"Daddy uses it when I'm bad, b'cuz I got kike evils in me that made me do the bad stuff. Umm…" she hesitated, clearly trying to find the words to explain.

I fought back my impatience and horror of her inevitable explanation, as she eventually continued on. "I gotta bleed," she said finally. "See, when I'm bad, Daddy gets the purity knife and makes me bleed out all of my evils, yeah…they go out through my bleedin and screamin. And then, when my blood stops and I'm done crying 'bout my new owwies, then I'm pure again. Yeah. B'cuz it's the purity knife," she explained casually.

She added with a raised eyebrow, "It was made just me for me, did you know that?"

I shook my head sadly…I just didn't have any energy left to be angry anymore. Sad was all I had left at the moment. Sad that it happened. Sad that she was brainwashed. Sad that nobody had protected her from a monster. Sad that she lost herself enough in her explanation to say that fucking 'kike' word again, but…I'm not going to say anything. I'll let it slip just this once. Right now, I just want to hold and comfort her, not scold and punish her.

"Yeah…he made it for me so he could help me get pure for my mommy," she explained further, before she asked, "Edward?"

I sighed and tried not to let my emotions show on my face. Anger, regret, shock, sadness, helplessness…

"Yeah, baby?"

"Do you got one?" she asked me, looking into my eyes, no doubt wanting to immediately search for the truth in what I would say next.

_Do I fucking have one? _

That question disgusted me because it goes back to Isabella's expectations for me to beat her for spilling some fucking milk…spank her with a goddamn hairbrush…fuck her mouth for whining.

_Goddamn it!_

I have to calm down and reign in the anger that had decided to show it's face after all. I pulled in deep breaths of her scent quickly, so I could remain calm and answer her as soon as possible.

"No, baby…no I don't have one and I would never do that to you," I assured her.

"What your daddy did was very wrong, _very_ wrong," I emphasized.

"He was sick and he didn't see that he didn't need to be so cruel and heartless with you because you are already '_pure'_, Isabella," I explained.

"Everything that he did to you was wrong, and it will _never_ happen again, and you will _never_ see that monster again. Do you understand?" I said…maybe a too forcefully.

She kept her wide-eyed gaze on me and nodded.

"You are _mine_, and nobody will ever touch you," I all but hissed out, my protective and possessive instincts I have over my mate becoming uncontrollable at the moment.

Her eyes became guarded. "Edward, you mad?" she asked.

I nodded, not able to trust my voice because I had just fucking hissed at my five year old.

_Awesome, and you're new parenting skills just keep getting better, and better…dumbass._

Her facial expression became worried then, and she sniffled. "At me?" she squeaked out as her bottom lip began to tremble.

My eyes widened at the thought of her thinking that.

I shook my head quickly and said, "No."

I cradled her to my chest and stuck my nose in her hair, continually and methodically breathing in her scent. When I knew my voice wouldn't be so rough anymore, I spoke again.

"No, baby…I'm not mad at you. Never mad at you…" I murmured against the side of her neck.

"Then who?" she whispered in my ear.

I swallowed some venom, then said, "Your daddy," clarifying it for her.

She pushed away from my chest a little then, so that she could look at my face. She sucked on her pouty bottom lip and caressed my cheek as I felt my hardened features soften under her warm, gentle touch. She made eye contact with me and allowed me to immerse myself in her beautiful chocolate depths.

She nodded sadly and said, "Me too."

* * *

A/N:

If you didn't already know, the song Isabella sings when she's outside with her sidewalk chalk is Korn's 'Hey Daddy'. If you haven't heard it, you gotta go to YouTube and listen, but imagine it being sung in a creepy little girl voice.

Leave me a review to brighten my motherfuckin day :)

xoxo


	21. Her Punishment And Fears

BPOV

"…and then we went and got this tire swing. Do you like it, sweetie? It looks really fun, I bet you can't wait to swing on it," I heard Alice say.

In a cute baby voice.

How ironic…could her voice pitch get any freakin higher?

**Bella, is that girl nice to me?** I heard Isabella's shy voice ask.

_Yeah_.

**Of course she is, kid. That's Ali! She's our bestie** Marie's voice assured Isabella.

I looked around then, and realized that it definitely wasn't night time anymore. How long had I been out?

I was in the backyard standing next to Alice who was giving me an encouraging, but…almost desperate look, as if she couldn't wait any longer for me to say something back to her. Or hug her. Or something.

I noticed that the girls' sports equipment was set up, sidewalk chalk lay haphazardly on the pavement below a basketball hoop and the basketball was sitting on the grass a few feet away from where me and Alice were standing. The 16ft trampoline was put together and stood tall in the middle of the yard…music was playing from the weather-proof stereo system around us…I recognized the song as Shinedown's 'Burning Bright', and I saw that Jasper was helping Edward set up a tire swing on a nearby tree.

Isabella's swing…

**It's gonna be sooo fun** Isabella whispered to me.

**I can't wait to swing really high and then just jump the fuck off of it** I heard Marie's excited voice say.

_Right…well, you guys have fun with that._

I sighed, wanting some answers about what had happened while I was out, and I wanted to know what freakin day it was because the girls had obviously taken over for a while. I could already tell that it was sometime in the afternoon.

I turned to my best friend and asked with a small smile, "Hey Alice, what's up?"

She looked slightly confused for second, so I clarified for her. "Um, yeah…the girls like to switch it up on people a lot. They think it's funny. So…yeah. I'm me again," I told her with a shrug.

"Bella!" she said brightly and pulled me in for a hug.

I chuckled and hugged her back tightly. "Miss me?"

"You have no idea…" she said, and she sounded almost relieved.

"Bella?" Edward's voice was behind me all of a sudden.

I turned around and looked up at him with a smile. He grinned back at me, and a second later, I was being enveloped in his arms and crushed to his chest.

He breathed in deeply. "Hmmm…missed you," he breathed out.

I kissed his neck and jaw line that were currently next to where my lips at the moment and whispered, "How long was I gone, honey?"

"Almost a day," he murmured against the skin on my shoulder, then pulled back so he could look at my face, but kept me in his arms. "It's Thursday afternoon," he informed me.

"I'll give you two a moment," Alice said while she slipped by us, then started in the direction of Jasper and the new tire swing.

I nodded to her and looked back at Edward. I stared at his dazzling smile and gave him one of my own. It warmed my heart to know that he had missed me, even though I had been here the whole time…just as two different people.

He never failed to amaze me. He was dividing me, Marie and Isabella into three different, individual people and loving each of us equally. Like, right now…he's so happy that I'm back, but I bet he's probably missing the girls right now too.

_So sweet._

**So bloody romantic** Marie chimed in.

**Love my Edward…** Isabella whispered.

I sighed and bit my lip. "Edward…what happened? And what about my fine? I gotta call my dad and let him know my decision," I said distractedly and went to remove myself from his arms, intent on finding a phone.

But he held me to him and kissed my forehead. "It's taken care of, love."

Surprised, I looked back up at him. "Edward, I _told_ _you_ I didn't want you to pay it," I said sharply, before he cut me off.

"Shhh…I take care of you. Not Marie. _I_ do," he said in a soothing voice, but I could hear the conviction in his words.

I sighed and looked away from his eyes then.

_Why does he have to go behind my back and do something I asked him specifically **not** to do? G__od, he is infuriating as hell -_

**But sexy as _fuck_**Marie said, cutting off my train of thought.

"Bella…" Edward's voice pleaded with me to look at him.

So I did, only to see that his eyes were begging for me to understand.

I gave him a quick kiss to let him know that I wasn't _that_ mad, then asked, "Tell me what happened?"

He seemed to contemplate something for a minute, then took my hand and led me over to the porch swing a few feet away. Once we were sitting, he scooted close to me, so that we were hip to hip and I kept my hand in his.

"Where do you want me to start, love?" he asked, suddenly looking guarded and unsure.

"The beginning…" I trailed off, as if it should be obvious.

I pulled an 'Edward move' then, and started rubbing circles into his palm. I could tell that some of the things were going to be difficult for him to say.

_God, what did you guys do…?_ I asked the girls, suddenly apprehensive of Edward's explanation.

**Not a motherfuckin thing…** Marie responded.

Isabella was silent.

_Isabella?_

**I played and drawed** was her simple explanation.

_Okay…_

"Well…Marie came around first and I found out exactly how she was planning on getting that money for your fine. She's been a drug dealer on the side," he started before I cut him off.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me…" I breathed out, exasperated.

He shook his head. "Let me finish."

"I'll kill Jacob," I blurted out.

"Not if I get to him first," he challenged.

I clenched my jaw and the fist that wasn't in Edward's hand at the moment.

_Marie?_

**It was Jacob's fucking idea the entire time and Quil went along with it, so none of this is my goddamn fault, doll. **

Right.

"Go on," I insisted, before adding quickly, "Edward, you gotta promise me that you won't let Marie pull her crap anymore. I mean, now that you're back…you can keep her line, right? Just do what you gotta do…don't let her land me with anymore criminal charges. Okay?" I asked while intently looking into his eyes.

He nodded and kissed my forehead. "I promise," he said.

**What the fuck are you doing? Didn't you hear his speech the other night? He's gonna bust my ass** Marie said, sounding pissed.

_Like he already hasn't come close?_

**I wouldn't be getting too cheeky, doll. It's _your_ ass too** she pointed out smugly.

"Ok, go on…"

"Well, when I insisted that she couldn't do that and that I would handle it in the morning, she threw a fit…demanding to call Jacob. Oh, and that's another thing…Jacob can come here and see you, but you're not going to the reservation anymore," he said and watched for my reaction.

I was disappointed that he was going to keep me away from the Rez…mad that he was telling me what to do. I wasn't a child, like Isabella or an out of control teen, like Marie.

But I couldn't find it in me to fight him for my friendship with Jacob right now. That bastard had let Marie sell drugs…and I fucking knew it wasn't just weed and pills. Quil would have had her boosting meth, heroine and cocaine. Hard core shit that would get my ass sent to prison for a long time if Marie was ever caught.

Fuck Jacob.

Fuck Quil.

So I nodded my acceptance, and he continued on. "So then Isabella came around to hang out for a bit. She actually stayed until bedtime and even woke up in the middle of the night for a bit. But I'm getting ahead of myself…so, Isabella showed up a few minutes after Marie had fallen asleep from her fit while I was pacing with her in my arms. She likes her new movies, and markers and her doll…" he said, trailing off.

Clearly avoiding the subject.

"What did she do?" I asked.

God, I feel like a parent who is picking up their child from the sitter's. 'How bad was my kid?'

"Well, she had a lot of fun showing her artistic abilities by drawing on herself with her new markers," he said while fighting a smile at the memory.

I giggled then, remembering how I used to do that as a child when I wasn't feeling well. I'd get out my markers and make myself 'pretty', no doubt that was _exactly_ what Isabella was doing.

"And she drew a picture of my face, and it was remarkable. She has a true talent, it looks like a professional did it," he informed me.

I nodded, already knowing Isabella's abilities.

He frowned then. "But…she also did what Carlisle called automatic writing. The…the um, phrases and words that she used were quite disturbing, Bella," he said, never breaking eye contact with me.

"I know what that is…the automatic writing. They had me do it in the hospital a lot when I was institutionalized as a child. I think I have a pretty good idea of the things she wrote down…" I said while internally cringing at the memories of my time in a state hospital.

"Yes, well…Carlisle has the paper. I don't know if you want to look at it, but it is available," he said, but I shook my head.

I didn't want to read it. Most of those memories of my childhood are blocked and repressed, filtering down to Isabella. I want to keep it that way. I know thinking that way will only cause problems in my therapy like it has before, but frankly…I don't give a damn. I do not want to deal with what Isabella is made to deal with. I mean, the memories are obviously repressed for a _reason_.

"Okay, well then there was bath time," he said, to which I gasped in horror, followed by my famous blush.

He chuckled at my expression and kissed my cheek, whispering softly in my ear, "You're beautiful," then proceeded to gently suck on my earlobe, sending shivers down my spine. He felt it, of course, and chuckled again, igniting goosebumps along my neck.

I stared at Edward's smug grin as he looked at me adoringly while I whispered, "She couldn't take a bath by herself?"

_Isabella, for the love of God!_ I shouted at her, horrified that the first time Edward had seen me naked, I had been acting like a five year old. Could my life get anymore fucked up?

**But the soapies hurt my eyes…** she whined as an explanation.

_I will buy you some fucking tearless shampoo_ I said curtly, then immediately began to wonder when the last time I shaved was.

Edward interrupted my thoughts when he chuckled again at my expression. I'm sure that shock, embarrassment, anger and even a bit of hope were written across my face.

_He said I was beautiful? So…that means he liked what he saw?_

**Well duh, doll. I don't know about you, but I am one sexy bitch** she proclaimed smugly.

"She was in the tub for about ten minutes, scrubbing off the marker mess that was on her skin, and playing with her bath toys before she called me into the bathroom," he said, and got a twinkle of amusement in his eyes at the memory. "She needed help getting off these purple hearts she had drawn on her cheeks, and sweetheart…" he laughed gently, "the whole thing was just too cute for words. I mean, I look down at her from my book and she's on the floor with her shirt off, a pretty rainbow around her little belly button, a bright pink arm, midnight blue stars on her hand and wrist, and purple hearts peppering her rosy cheeks. So fucking adorable," he said fondly, as if he was talking about his own child.

_Hmm…interesting._

Isabella giggled, **He said I'm fucking adorable.**

"So…you scrubbed her cheeks?" I asked, trying to get a clear picture of exactly _how much_ of my naked body he saw.

He nodded. "Yeah, and I washed her hair," he answered my unspoken thought.

_So, maybe he hadn't really seen anything at all? _

Well…that's good.

"And then she drank one of the protein shakes while I put on one of her movies for her. But taking the sleeping pill was a little bit of a problem," he hedged.

"What happened?"

"Carlisle had to come in and tell her to take it. With some gentle prodding and encouragement, she eventually took it. She also asked Carlisle some questions, that eventually gave us some hints as to why she is so nervous around him," he said before I heard Isabella's voice.

**Ugly yellow hair** she muttered accusingly.

"Oh, um…yeah, she really doesn't like people with blonde hair. She's practically racists against them, or something. Very apprehensive of them and sometimes very hateful towards them," I told him.

"Yeah, we came to that conclusion, love," he said after a minute.

I nodded, so he continued. "She woke up in the middle of the night, wanting to play with her new doll and jump on the bed. But when I told her that it was still time to sleep, she didn't want to and ended up whining about it," he informed me before he hesitated.

I cringed, wondering what happened next.

_Why is he hesitating?_

"I eventually told her to stop, and that if she didn't, then she was going to be in trouble," he said, looking at me to see my reaction.

I nodded. "Ok…" I trailed off, silently asking him to just say it already.

"Well, then she asked what kind of trouble, and when I didn't elaborate, she asked if I was going to fuck her mouth…for whining," he informed me, never breaking eye contact.

"Oh," was my impressive response.

Images of doing that to Edward filled my mind and I suddenly felt my stomach muscles tightening as a shiver of lust ran down my spine.

_Mmm, I bet he would taste good._

**So motherfuckin delicious…** Marie's thoughts agreed with mine.

I shook my head out of it's lust filled haze and focused back on Edward who was watching me intently and smirking. I exhaled loudly and blushed to which he chuckled.

_Awesome time to get turned on, Bella. Way to go, pervert._

Marie chuckled.

He inched closer to my face, wearing that same devilish smirk, and when he got close to my ear, I could hear…what…was he _purring_?

_Oh, God..._

"You smell divine…" he purred in my ear.

Fucking purred.

Mmm-mmm…and the sound was so delicious. I could feel the heat grow in between my legs, and I'm sure he could too.

"Mmmm, Bella...you like that idea, don't you? Don't lie, love…I can smell your desire. I wonder if you taste as enticing as you smell," he whispered before taking my earlobe in between his lips.

I think I whimpered. And it was embarrassing, but it was the only response my mind could come up with at the moment.

He chuckled then, and said, "Are you speechless, my Bella? Do you _want_ me to taste you?"

He started sucking gently on my neck then, intending to leave a mark.

"God, yes," I breathed out.

I fucking love it when he does that. Mark me, own me, whatever…just keep on sucking...

"Fuck…" he slightly hissed through gritted teeth.

I put my hand in his hair, holding his face to me. I never wanted him to stop.

"Mmmm," he moaned out, his mouth still attached to my neck.

His hand that was rested on my knee started to inch it's way slowly up my thigh, then gripped my waist firmly.

"Edward," I moaned his name, to which he reacted by moving his hand again.

It went slowly upwards, eventually grazing the side of my breast, and then his cool hand was on the other side of my neck, cradling my head to him.

"Shit, Bella…so good," he whispered, then licked the hickey he had just left on my neck.

I shivered, and it wasn't because I was cold.

He pulled away then, but kept my face gently cradled in his hands. He looked at me, eyes full of determination, lust and apologies. "We need to stop," he whispered hoarsely to me.

I nodded, just now remembering that he was a fucking _vampire_, and wondering how much danger I had been in a second ago.

When he let his hands fall away from my face, I laid my head on his shoulder and squeezed my thighs together, trying to get some delicious friction to my aching center. I knew my panties were slightly damp now, but it was his own damn fault for being so sexy and saying those words, putting ideas in my head. And then he had to go and purr. And God, leave a mark on me. I love it when he does that. Take control, own me…I am completely his and I show it when I submit to his wishes of marking me whenever he likes. I only want to please him and he knows it.

"We got a little off track there," Edward said sheepishly as he wrapped his arm around me and tucked me into his side.

I cleared my throat and nodded. "Yeah…"

"So, I take it you had the same reaction to those words that I did?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yeah," I mumbled and then blushed.

He kissed my hot cheek and said, "Yeah…so, between us it's all fun and dirty talk, but…" he frowned then, "no so much with Isabella," he finished.

"No, I imagine not," I agreed. "What did you tell her when she asked that?"

He shrugged. "Just that she didn't have to worry about that happening to her anymore."

I nodded so he continued. "So this morning, Marie woke up and after breakfast, we played some basketball together. But then I guess Isabella missed me, because she came back around and wanted to play with her sidewalk chalk, but not before informing me that you are allergic to bees," he said, looking at me pointedly.

"Oh…" was my only response. Again.

He was agitated now, and turned to look me in my eyes, completely interrupting our cuddling pose.

_Damn it…_

"No, not 'oh', Bella…why didn't you tell me that?" he asked me with a firm tone.

_Is it wrong that I think that tone of voice is hot coming from him? _

Yeah…it's probably just because I'm still turned on from the whole 'marking me' episode.

**It's scary** Isabella informed me.

**Agreed** Marie chimed in.

"Because it was irrelevant, Edward. You already worry way too much about me," I reasoned and sighed, exasperated.

His eyes widened at my carefree attitude. "It is _not_ irrelevant," he insisted. "You see…this is what I mean about you being careless and not making your safety a priority. That's why I have to do it all the time," he told me, sounding really frustrated before he ran a hand through his unruly hair and sending a glare my way.

_Jeez, what's with the mood change…can we go back to making out now? _

**See? Angry Edward is motherfuckin scary** Marie reiterated.

_Okay, yeah…maybe._

"I'm sorry, it must have slipped my mind," I said, giving in so that he would be in a better mood.

"No, _no_ excuses," he insisted.

"Okay, I'm sorry. At least you know now, right?" I said, trying to brighten his sudden grumpy mood.

"Yeah, thanks to a five year old, Bella. I really wish you would have told me. Is there anything else you're keeping from me?" he asked, keeping eye contact with a hard stare.

_Okay…okay, why do I feel like a naughty child all of a sudden?_

**Fucking sucks, doesn't it?** Marie taunted.

_Shut up._

**You in trouble?** Isabella asked.

_No…at least I don't think so._

I shook my head and bit my lip, wanting this to be over with already. I hated it when he was mad at me. It barely ever happened, but when it did, it was usually over something really big, and he was hard to calm down.

He closed his eyes and sighed, then said in a softer tone, "Alright."

He pulled me back into his side and I smiled, knowing that he wasn't mad anymore.

"Well, Isabella tried out the trampoline and had a lot of fun on it, then she played with her sidewalk chalk," he said, but then stopped.

"Okay…sounds like they had fun," I hedged, wondering why he was hesitating again.

"Would you like to see what she drew?" he asked with a slight apprehension.

I shrugged. "Um…sure."

We stood from the porch swing then, and walked over by the basketball hoop.

As soon as I looked down at the ground, I gasped and looked away from it. I looked anywhere and everywhere but at that damn picture.

"What's wrong, Bella?" Edward asked, obviously noticing the spike in my heart rate. Even I could feel it pounding in my chest, threatening to burst out of my rib cage.

"You know what the fuck is wrong Edward, get rid of it," I said curtly.

He ran inside the house then and came back out with a pitcher of water. He poured it all over the chalk's markings and soon, the picture was gone…disappearing before my eyes. I breathed a sigh of relief and looked at him appreciatively.

"Okay, Edward?"

"Yes, love?" he responded with worried eyes.

"From now on…whatever Isabella draws, or writes, don't show it to me. Okay?" I stressed, to which nodded immediately.

"Edward, the words and things created from her mind are things that I have blocked out and repressed. You understand? I mean…my mind obviously blocked these memories out for a reason. That reason being, that I'm weak and can't handle it. So Isabella does. She is here solely for that purpose. To deal with the horrors of my childhood, so that I don't have to. That is why I have a dramatic reaction to certain things from my past. Like those pictures. Isabella is fine about it, calm even. She's only that way because that is what her existence has only ever consisted of. She was made specifically to deal with that pain. So…don't show me that stuff anymore. Anything and everything that Isabella creates, get rid of it, or hide it before I have a chance to learn about it," I told him.

Edward didn't answer, but kept his worried stare on me as Carlisle walked out the French doors and started walking in our direction. I glanced around and saw that Alice and Jasper had already left, probably to give us some privacy…or, at least, the illusion of it. I saw the tire swing hanging down from the tree branch and smiled, knowing that Isabella would have fun with it.

"Bella…" Carlisle said, interrupting my reverie. "I've been hoping to catch you sometime today. I heard part of your conversation and knew that you were around now. I am sorry for eavesdropping, but it really is unavoidable around here, and I needed to know when you were yourself again so that I could speak with you."

I nodded. "Sure, what's up?"

"I would like to set up a schedule for your therapy. I figure since you're not in school at the moment, that you're main focus can be therapy and we could go up to four times a week with this," he informed me.

My eyes widened at that. I had never had to attend therapy so often before, but…it was different then. I'm not in school now and I live with the damn doctor this time.

I nodded eventually and mumbled, "Kay…"

I noticed their intent stares on my face, probably looking for any signs of a switch between personalities right now, and I rolled my eyes. "When do you want to start?" I asked him after a minute.

"I work tonight, so in the morning would be fine. In fact, most of the sessions would have to be in the morning, dear. I'm constantly on call at the hospital and my shifts are at night, so…is that schedule alright with you?" he asked.

"Yeah, sure…" I responded not very enthusiastically.

I was not looking forward to therapy at all. It was always a grueling, emotional experience and it never solved a fuckin thing.

"And Bella…" Carlisle hesitated.

_Why do people keep doing that now? Hesitating their speech with me. It's fucking unnerving…_

"Yeah?" I asked when he didn't finish.

He smiled gently at me before he continued. "You witnessing Isabella's drawings, words, and actions are going to be a form of your therapy, dear," he explained as I tensed.

I knew that it would. I just hated that aspect of it.

"It is the only way to bring out the things your mind has blocked away from you, so that you can start to heal. You have to discover and deal with what Isabella is keeping from you. It is the only way…but I think you already know this," he guessed.

I nodded curtly, and wrapped my arms around myself to provide a little comfort at the idea of plunging head first into the pain of my past. Soon I found my stare at him and Edward, turning into a slight glare, and I cleared my throat to get rid of the lump forming there.

I exhaled sharply before saying, "Yeah, I already know that I need to rip off the bandage that is Isabella to expose the gaping wound that is my childhood, and let it air out to fucking heal," I spat at him.

God, I was so angry all of a sudden.

"Yes, I've heard all of the assinine analogies and how I need to deal with what happened to me. But I just can't. I don't _want_ to and I _know_ that can't handle it," I said as my eyes started to glisten with my tears of frustration…and anger.

I wanted Edward to save me.

I wanted Edward to wrap me in his arms and tell me that everything was going to be okay.

I wanted Edward to say that I didn't have to do anything that made me uncomfortable...didn't have to do anything that I didn't want to.

I wanted him to make Carlisle forget about this whole therapy fiasco and leave me the fuck alone.

But he didn't. He just stood there, behind Carlisle, staring at me with worried eyes…clearly showing that his decision was made and who's side he was on.

**Traitor** Marie's angry voice accused.

I shook my head at Marie's choice of words and sniffled, wiping my eyes before any tears could fall. "Why can't people just understand that?" I asked, looking at both Carlisle and Edward. "Isabella is here for that purpose, and she's doing just fine with that job, along with Marie. I can't _deal_ with things of the past, so why does everyone want to force me to?" I asked as I let a tear fall.

"We're not forcing you to do anything, love," Edward said quickly, trying to placate me.

"It's what must be done in order for you to begin the healing process," Carlisle added in.

_Awesome. A fucking team effort, or united front, whatever… just what I need._

"Yeah, well, what if I don't _want_ to heal?" I shot back, letting my anger show now. "What if I _like_ Isabella and Marie. Huh? What then?" I hedged.

Great, that really does sound crazy…what, I _like_ having voices in my head now? I like losing the time and being blamed for things that I didn't do?

_No_.

**I knew you loved me** Marie's smug voice piped up.

_Not now, Marie. I'm having a crisis._

**Oh, I know** she said, sounding amused.

_What's so funny?_

**Are you gonna fucking cry about it? I swear to Christ, if I have to come out there and straighten things out again, our Edward and your dumb doctor friend won't like me too much** she said, sounding almost excited about the aspect of causing problems.

_No, I'm not going to cry, so calm down._

**Oh, we'll see about that, pretty Bell** she said and then chuckled darkly.

"That's okay, love. I like them too," Edward answered before shaking his head a bit. "No…I love them," he corrected himself. "Because they are apart of you," he clarified and continued on to explain, "But I also need what's best for you sweetheart. And that's for you to get better," he said before crossing the few feet distance between us and enveloping me in a hug.

I wrapped my arms tightly around his neck, needing his touch and reassurance so badly right now. He picked me up off the ground and held me to him as I wrapped my legs around his waist.

"You're going to do so good, I know it…" he whispered encouragingly in my ear. "And I'm here for you, I'll always be here, love," he said in a voice that was soft as silk before kissing away the tear that had dripped onto my cheek. "You are so strong, baby…so beautiful, and so strong. I know you'll get through this because you can do anything. And when it gets to be too hard, my family and I are going to be right here to help you, sweetheart. You are not alone in this, Bella," he assured me before squeezing me tighter to his chest. "I'm here for you," he murmured against my neck, then placed a gentle kiss to the mark he had left there earlier.

I sniffled and nodded against his neck, then lifted my head to look back at Carlisle. He looked guilty and apologetic, but his determination on this matter overruled both of those emotions displayed on his face.

EPOV

It broke my heart to see Bella freak out about her inevitable therapy sessions. I wanted to step in and say 'fuck it', and 'never mind', but I just couldn't. I couldn't always hold her hand and coddle her, no matter how much I wanted to. Therapy was for the best, but damn it, I could still offer my comfort and support, if not a way out of this whole mess.

But I couldn't let myself be that for Bella...a way out, an escape from reality and her responsibilities to her health. Even if the first thought in my mind had been to just take her and run away to live happily ever after with my three girls. It just wasn't realistic.

And it was ridiculous how disappointing that actually was.

So I stood there and held her to me, offering my comforting touch that I knew would offer her some relief. I could tell early in our relationship that my simple touch had a calming effect on her; her blood pressure and breathing would even out and her body would relax.

I was interrupted out of my thoughts when her head lifted from my shouler and she turned to look at Carlisle.

"Hey..." she muttered to him.

"Yes?" he asked.

"My Bell doesn't want your therapy," Marie informed him while keeping a tight grip on me.

Carlisle sighed. "Marie, we need to analyze-" he started before she cut him off.

"My Bell doesn't want the therapy, why don't you go and analyze _that_," she suggested in a sarcastic tone.

"I know dear, but it's for the best, so that she can heal, Marie."

"Fuck healing," she shot back rudely.

She was seated on my forearm, as I was currently holding her body to mine. I sighed, tired of her constant attitude and blatant disrespect for my family. I also didn't like where this was heading...she was going to try and stop Bella's therapy and interrupt her healing progress.

With a newfound determination, I loosened my hand's grip on her ass and took it away, before quickly bringing my palm back, effectively swatting her ass, then kept my hand firmly in place.

She looked away from Carlisle and back to me with a hurt, almost betrayed look on her face. "Ow..." she mumbled. After a few seconds, she reached her hand back to shift my hand to the side and rub her sore spot, then scowled at me and asked in an accusing tone, "What the fuck was that for?"

"You need to stop being so damn rude, and therapy is what's best for Bella. You are not going to stand in the way of that," I told her in a firm tone, only _slightly_ internally cringing from the guilt of spanking her.

_Wow, I'm getting better at this firm thing..._

She didn't say anything, just laid her head back down on my shoulder and sniffled, keeping her hand on her ass, probably scared that I would smack it again.

I turned my attention back to Carlisle, who was still standing there waiting for a confirmation on the therapy schedule.

"She'll be there in the morning," I told him with certainty.

He nodded and smiled gently at me, congragulating me in his thoughts on how I was handling Marie. She had shut her mouth and was letting this exchange take place now, and he was thankful for that.

"What time does she need to be in the study?" I asked, just to make sure. I knew the second he thought the answer, but he still said it aloud for Marie's benefit.

"10:00 would be fine," he replied smoothly.

I nodded and turned my attention back to Marie. Her hand was still in the same spot, cradling her left butt cheek now and her body was very still. I moved my head back a bit and looked down so that I could see her face. Her head was on my shoulder, facing my neck, which she was staring at, and she had a scowl on her face, her lips pursed. I knew she was crying because I never stopped smelling the salt of her tears since my Bella started crying about having to go to therapy in the first place. She confirmed my thoughts when I saw a tear drop slide out the corner of her eye and down the slope of her button nose. She sniffled, and I grabbed her chin so that she would lift her head and look at me. When she did, she looked me square in the eye, that adorable scowl never leaving her face.

_Aw...my angry little kitten._

"She'll be there," I spoke my words for Carlisle, but my gaze never left Marie's. I squinted my eyes, daring her to argue before I cocked my head to the side a bit and asked her lowly, "Won't you, baby?"

She stared into my penetrating gold eyes for a few seconds before she found the truth in my silent threat to spank her again, then finally nodded, silently answering my question.

"Tell him," I said, nodding in Carlisle's direction before adding through gritted teeth, "And your tone with him had better be respectful from now on," I warned.

Ever so slowly, almost purposefully, as if she was being that slow just to try and piss me off, or get a rise out of me, she turned her head until she was looking at Carlisle again. He smiled, encouraging her to speak, and when she finally did, I almost wished that she had kept her mouth shut.

"Sure doc," she said sharply. "We'll all be there, 10:00 on the damn dot. All three of us girls..." she said before her voice went from sharp to seductive like a flip of a switch. "I bet you'll love that, huh? You ever had an orgy with three girls before?" she said with an amused smirk at his momentarily shocked face before he composed his features again. "It's motherfuckin marvelous, let me tell you..." she trailed off before I stopped her rant with another smack on her ass.

I would have smacked the same spot as before, but her hand was still covering it, so I opted for the other cheek.

She stopped mid sentence and screamed, "Oww!" shooting me another betrayed look.

"What did I just tell you?" I asked angrily.

_She was testing you, just as Isabella had done last night with her markers_ Carlisle thought sympathetically to me.

She kicked out her feet, then demanded, yelling in my face, "Put. Me. Down!"

I sighed angrily and tightened my grip on her.

_Marie, what am I going to do with you?_

I already knew, but I didn't want to do the whole real spanking bit that I had warned her and Bella about...where I make a big show of it by putting her over my fucking knee.

_Damn it._

I shook my head, then started my march to the house, intent on our bedroom.

"She'll be there," I muttered an assurance to Carlisle as I passed by him, holding Marie's struggling body against mine.

I decided it was best to avoid any interaction with my family right now, so I ran at vampire speed into the house and up to our bedroom. When we arrived, I clicked the lock into place, then lightly tossed her struggling body onto the soft bed and stared down at her as I stood at the foot of the bed.

_Could I really do this?_

I ran both of my hands roughly through my hair, frustrated at Marie and upset at my predicament. I allowed myself a glance at her and saw that she was sitting on the bed, arms crossed over her chest in a show of defiance, and she was staring up at me with that adorable scowl still fixed on her flushed face. Some of her hair has come out of her ponytail, the cap no longer on her head, and there were some loose strands framing her face, trailing down her back in soft curls.

I looked away then, trying my best to get my resolve in this situation.

_She needs to learn to listen._

I can't hurt her.

_She needs to stop being disrespectful towards my family._

I don't want to make her cry.

_She's testing me, like a child. She needs to know that I follow through on my threats, as well as promises, or she won't ever trust me._

But...I can't hurt her.

_She needs to learn that she can't just sabotage Bella's therapy sessions._

But she's going to fucking _cry_.

"Geez, Edward - will you make up your mind, already?" Alice suddenly whispered to me from her room. "You're driving me crazy!"

I sighed, knowing that I couldn't make up my mind. It just wasn't that fucking simple, and just standing here wasn't doing any good, so I sat down on the edge of the bed...my movements becoming almost robotic with what I was about to do. I turned and looked at Marie with defeat, anger and concern etched on my features.

I raised my hand a little and crooked my finger at her. "Come here..." I said in a suprisingly calm voice.

I was anything but calm right now.

She crawled over to the edge of the bed and hopped down. She sniffled and walked over to me, stopping in between my legs. We were almost nose to nose with how close she was standing. She sniffled again and wiped at her eyes, then stared back at me with that same damn scowl on her face.

I stared into her eyes and asked in a soft and gentle voice, "Why did you say those things to Carlisle when I told you to be respectful with him from now on?"

She bit her lip, but didn't answer.

"Hmmm?" I gently prodded into the sudden silence that enveloped the large room.

The only answer I got was another sniffle.

"Marie, why are you so intent on planning to try and ruin the upcoming therapy sessions?" I asked in that same soft voice, making a note to keep it fucking soft throughout this whole damn ordeal. I also noted to always keep the eye contact...well, as long as possible, anyway.

She still didn't answer.

_Okay, next question..._

"Did you think I was kidding the other night when I said that I would take you over my knee if I thought you needed it?"

Silence...and a sniffle.

"Why are you testing me, sweetheart?" I whispered then, almost desperate for an answer now.

I needed to know her thought process. I just didn't understand it. Did she _want_ to be spanked?

_This is so fucking confusing..._

But...I could smell the adrenaline in her blood. In fact, I had been smelling it the second she had stopped and stood directly in front of me. So, that would mean that this is something that she does _not_ want to happen.

After eighteen seconds of silently staring at eachother, me with a calm expression on my face, showing nothing of my internal battle, and her wearing her emotions plain on her face, sporting the same scowl and pursed lips, I sighed. I wanted nothing more than to kiss those pretty pink lips until they were relaxed and pouty again, but I knew that that would have to wait until later.

I cleared my throat, then said, "Marie, if you insist on continuing to be childish and not answer me so that we can talk about this, then I'll be more than happy to _treat_ you like a child and pull you across my lap," I hedged before adding, "Right. Now."

_It's now or never, Cullen._

I stared into her eyes five seconds longer, giving her a chance to speak. When she didn't, I gave her a subtle nod and muttered, "Alright..."

I reached my right hand out for her left arm then. She didn't try to fight me and we kept eye contact until I was pulling her body down so that she was bent over my lap. I had it so that her head was resting on the mattress beside my hip and her ass was located over my left knee. She had her right arm straight down the side of her body, pressing into my abdomen, and her left arm was bent at the elbow, her hand by her face. She turned her face towards my hip and let out a shaky breath. I felt her body tense, heard her jaw clench, and saw her hand curl into a tight fist.

I exhaled sharply.

_Fucking hell._

I slowly and tentatively put my palm on her ass and cringed when I heard a little whimper escape her tight lips. I hadn't even started yet...

_Shit. I can't do this._

"Don't change your mind now," Alice said to me from her room. "Do it, Edward. She's so conflicted and tight-lipped right now...I saw that this is the only way to get her to talk to you about what she's thinking," she assured me.

"Are you absolutely sure, Alice?" I asked in vampire frequency.

"Yeah...don't worry. She'll still love you," Alice said back

A split second later, I finally made up my mind and brought my hand down to Marie. Kind of hard...

"Oww..." she cried, the sound muffled by the jeans covered hip where she had immediately burrowed her face.

_Oh my God...I just fucking made her cry!_

But I trusted Alice, so I clenched my eyes shut and found the determination to bring my hand down again. But damn it, softer this time.

She fucking screamed and a sob tore through her throat. The sound tormented me.

_FUCK! __I can't...can't do this anymore._

I was in the middle of fixing to have a nervous breakdown with the love of my life draped over lap, when Marie finally started talking. And thank Christ for that, because I couldn't have brought my damn hand down to her again, even if my fucked up immortal life depended on it.

I exhaled sharply in both tension and relief as I heard Marie start to speak. I balled my hands in fists and put them behind my back, leaning back on them so I could stare down into Marie's flush, tear-stained face that was half-buried in my hip right now.

Her voice was shaky and it cracked through her whole speech because of her cries, but I could understand every damn word that fell from her perfect lips.

"My Bell went to a doctor before and he made Isabella go away," she explained and swallowed hard against another sob before she continued. "That fucking doctor turned my Bell against Isabella, like she meant _nothing_ to her! Like Isabella hadn't stuck by her side through all the bullshit, like they hadn't been besties, like they didn't fucking love eachother! My Bell just went and got rid of her, fucking _forgot_ all about her! Abandoned her! And now the new doc wants to do that to me and my Bell. He wants to take us away from eachother, doesn't want me talking to her anymore. Well, goddamn it, Isabella is back now and you all can _fuck off_ if you think we're going down without a motherfucking fight! Your dad can kiss my white naked ass Edward, and you can too! What the fuck, Edward? You don't love me and Isabella? You don't even _like_ us? You've been _lying_ to us this whole goddamn time? _Why_ don't you want us around anymore?" she shot off before growling out, "She's MY Bell, NOT your's, goddamnit. Fuck you and fuck your stupid doctor dad with his ugly fucking yellow hair!" she yelled, then yanked herself off of my lap.

Her face was flush and tearstained, and she looked so unbelievably angry and hurt, and she still had that haunted look of betrayal in her eyes. My heart broke at the sight of it. Her words ripped straight through my eternally damned soul.

That wasn't how I felt at all!

_Goddamn it! How do I fix this?_

"I hate you!" she screamed in my face, with tears streaming down her own. "You are not taking _my_ Bell away from me!" she cried desperately, putting a hand to her chest as the words 'my Bell' came out of her mouth.

She turned and stomped towards the bathroom then, entering it and slamming the door closed with such force that the door frame actually shook. The sound of the lock clicking followed soon after, and I heard her body sliding down against the door as loud, wracking sobs tore up her throat. She continued to cry as she sat on the tiled floor on the other side of the door.

I immediately went to the bathroom door, and was going to just break it down to get to her. My anxiety was spiked to full force and my need to comfort her was so intense right now, that I could actually feel my body begin to shake and shudder with the intensity of it.

"Don't, Edward..." Alice whispered to me.

"Goddamn it, Alice. My mate...she fucking _needs_ me!" I yelled, not even bothering with the vampire frequency bullshit anymore.

"I know! Just give her a minute," she advised, appearing by my side in a flash. "Sometimes girls just need to...cry it out," she explained while placing a comforting hand on my arm.

I growled, not liking the feelings coursing through me. Anxiety, sadness, anger, and my fucking intense need to comfort the fragile girl on the other side of that damn door.

"She needs me," I repeated quickly, not even realizing that I had taken a protective stance over the bathroom door.

"Sit on the other side of the door, right here..." Alice said, pointing to a spot that I knew was perfectly opposite of Marie's sobbing form.

I quickly sat down and put my ear up against the door. I could feel her body heat coming through the wood and it offered a small sliver of comfort to my anxiety-riddled body.

"Just talk to her," Alice whispered, then left the room.

"Marie...baby Isabella...my Bella..." I sucked in a sharp breath at the sound of all my girls' names coming out of my mouth.

I just needed to fucking hold her right now. I didn't care which one I got, I just needed them. I cringed and clenched my jaw as the sounds of Marie's cries filled my ears, the vibrations on the door from the sobs wracking her small body were subtly shaking my own body.

"I _love_ you...I fucking love you _so much_. Always. Always, baby girl. Marie I love you so much. I love your attitude and smart mouth, and your playfulness. I'm sorry if you misunderstood the reasoning for therapy, sweetheart...ugh, I'm _so_ fucking sorry! I don't feel like that. At all, baby...I love you. I want you. I swear it. Isabella, you make me so happy...I love you. My silly baby girl, I want you to come back out and play with me. I swear to God, I'll learn how to play that game you called 'house' and we'll play it all day long if you want. My Bella, you are my life...I love you so much. I don't exist without you..."

I continued to ramble on, pleading through the door as I confessed my heart to the three loves of my life, just wishing that she would open the fucking door already so that I could pull her into my arms and make her hurt just go the fuck away. She shouldn't be hurting. It was just all wrong...I needed her to feel better. So that I could feel better.

She continued to cry while I inhaled her scent into my lungs with every breath I took, and kept my body insistantly pressed against the door, just like she was doing with hers.

I continued to profess my love, over and over, and she continued to be just out of my reach...

* * *

A/N:

So, ok...I finally did it. Yes, Edward actually spanked her. Wasn't it just heartbreaking though? Aw...I feel bad for him and his conflicted emotions on that matter.

Let me know **_your feelings _**for Edward's problem with that. What is your advice for him? Boyfriend/Soulmate, but also part-time parent on the side? It can get complicated, you can imagine. Haha, I just realized that these scenes would be easier to write if they were actually in a BDSM relationship, or something, where spanking is normal and occurs regularly, but I can't do that to them. It sooooo does not fit the plot line. Know what I mean?

And then Marie's fears of abandonment and rejection based solely on Isabella's experience when Bella was a little girl, finally come out! Do you think she is justified in her feelings? Will she ever forgive Edward for making her feel unwanted?

And Isabella is aware too, people...don't forget that. How do you think she is feeling at the moment?

HMMMM......

And like I said before: Poor Bella...barely any face time, but let me remind you right now that it will be like that for a while. Marie and Isabella are absolutely _loving_ the spotlight and can't seem to get enough of fighting for Edward's attention and affections.

Please REVIEW

xoxo


	22. Reassurances And Attitude Problems

EPOV

"…it's not like that, love. Nobody is going to abandon you, I will always be here. I don't want you to have therapy so that you'll go away, sweetheart. I just want Bella to feel better. I need you guys to be okay. My _beautiful _girls, I love you all so much, I never lied about that. Won't you come out, baby? I will hold you…just open the door…" I kept pleading with her.

Three minutes later, I heard her moving around and realized that she was standing up. So, naturally, I stood too. Then the most wonderful thing in the whole fucking world happened.

She opened that damn door.

I took a second to drink in the sight of her. Her face was a delicious rosy red from crying, tears staining her cheeks, and some more of her long curls had come out of that messy ponytail at the nape of her neck. She sniffled and was rubbing her right eye in the most adorable way. As soon as the door was opened wide enough, I scooped her up into my arms and I cannot describe the feeling of relief that washed over me when she clung to me as if her life depended on it.

She burrowed her face in my neck and her little body shook with her cries that were starting up again.

"Edward," she squeaked, her voice cracking through her sobs, "don't make me go away." She sucked in a deep breath, "Please…" she pleaded and tightened her hold on my neck.

I tightened my hold on her, silently telling her I'd never let her go, and started our routine of pacing while I held her.

It always seemed to calm her down before, and that fact was ironic, because that was usually how you comforted babies and toddlers, so I would actually expect that of my little Isabella, but…not Marie. But before I could respond to her, or think anymore about how pacing calmed down my sassy seventeen year old, she gave me a muffled apology.

"I'm sorry," she sobbed out. "Sorry I was being wicked downstairs, sorry I didn't listen to you…" and then her hot breath fanned across my neck and collar bone and she breathed out another cry.

"Shhh…" I shushed her and kissed the top of her head gently.

I knew she was sorry but I didn't want to talk about her spanking right now. It was over. Dealt with, and done. She didn't need to worry about it anymore. I allowed my fingers to give her more than likely still sore bottom a soft, short caress before I gently patted it and held my hand in place.

"I know baby, I love you…" my soft voice in her ear seemed to relax her body a little.

"Don't make me go away," she repeated in the pitiful excuse of what was left of her melodic voice. It was shaky because of all the crying she had done. "Don't take my Bell away from me…"

"I won't, sweetheart," I assured her and kept up my pacing while gently rubbing her back.

"I fucking love her, she's mine…" she whispered with determination and sniffled.

"I know."

"Don't let your dumb doctor dad make me go away. Don't let him hurt us," she pleaded through her cries.

"He's not going to hurt you," I stated with conviction.

_Poor dear…_ Esme thought at me, immensely worried about the delicate beauty in my arms.

She sniffled, then said, "Isabella is so scared, Edward, and it's freaking me out," she informed me, then lifted her head from my shoulder to look into my eyes. I stared back into her watery gaze as she asked, "Why is she so fucking scared if he's not gonna hurt us?"

"I don't know, baby…but she doesn't need to be," I said with sincerity.

I really didn't know why Isabella would be so scared of sitting in a room with my father and talking for a little bit. I knew she was nervous around him, but I thought we were starting to make some progress in that department.

Marie's bloodshot eyes got an almost desperate look in them as another sob tore through her throat. "She showed me, Edward! There were ugly, grungy white walls. A hard bed with a scratchy fucking blanket. And wicked, nasty people who hurt her and there were _lotts _of needles!" she stressed, desperately trying to get me to understand. She sniffled and shook her head, "You can't let him hurt us…please, Edward?" she asked in a strained voice before she slammed her hand down on my shoulder and she screamed out a frantic, "Goddamn it, please!" clearly starting to panic as she started to breathe harder.

_Holy shit._

_Sounds like the state hospital where Bella was institutionalized as a child_ Carlisle thought at me.

"Calm down, love. Nobody's going to fucking hurt you. I won't let that happen," I said firmly, then placed a gentle hand to the back of her head and brought it back down to it's spot my shoulder.

I started rubbing soothing circles into the tense muscles on her back again, trying to provide any comfort and reassurance that I could. A panic attack was the last thing she needed right now.

She buried her face back into my neck. "Please," she brokenly repeated through another cry.

"Shhh…" I shushed her.

She continued to cry, but at least they weren't those horrible wracking sobs that shook her entire frame anymore. She had started to relax with my touch, as I knew she would, and she was beginning to breathe normally again.

Six minutes passed by before she spoke again.

"Don't take my Bell away," she murmured pitifully and nuzzled her face into my neck some more.

"I won't."

"I need her so fucking much and she needs me. She's _my _pretty Bell. _Mine_."

"I know, love," I said, still a little stunned at Marie's possessiveness and devotion to Bella.

She suddenly gasped for a breath of air. "Edward I love you, don't you love me?" she asked in a small voice, suddenly sounding very insecure.

"Of course I love you, you silly, beautiful girl," I said incredulously. "I love you so much," I repeated with conviction and kissed her warm forehead.

"Don't make me go away…I fucking promise I'll try not to be wicked anymore," she said in that same pathetically small voice.

"Marie, I'm not having you go to therapy because you disobeyed me in the backyard, that's not what this is about," I quickly clarified for her. "Nothing you could do would ever make me want you to 'go away', sweetheart. I love you," I assured her. "This is not a punishment. This is so Bella will feel better and so that you all can be _okay_."

After a minute of silence and sniffles, she spoke again in a cracked voice. "Isabella says not to trust the fucking blondies…"

I sighed. "Isabella is a very prejudice little girl with a lot of misconceptions because she simply does not know any better, or doesn't understand. There is nothing wrong with blonde hair, Marie. You know that."

Her fingers were at the back of my neck and she started lazily twirling strands of my hair. "Yeah, well that Rose vampire isn't helping their case any," she said cheekily, her usual spunky attitude starting to peek it's head out now that she was relatively calm again.

I furrowed my brow and asked, "Why do you dislike Rosalie so much, sweetheart?"

She sighed and cleared her throat before she began her explanation. I placed another kiss to her warm flesh as she started talking and squeezed her tighter to me. I was just so glad that she was fucking calm again.

"She's rude and hateful to my Bell just because my Bell wants to be down with you for life…for fucking ever, for eternity. So I'm rude and hateful back, to show that bitch what it feels like. Nobody gets away with that shit…treating my sweet Bell like that. And I know some stuff about Rosalie through what my Bell has told me and some of her memories. Rosalie is a vain cuntbag and a hypocrite. She doesn't want my Bell to be a bloodsucker like you all, but it's okay for her to go out and find her own piece of man candy then ask the doc to change him for her? Em was a goddamn human and she fell in love with him, and that's all sweet n' shit, but when you fall in love with My Bell…all of a sudden, it's wrong? You can't love her as much as Rose loves Em? That's some bullshit and plus, she's jealous that you wanna sink your cock into my pretty Bell and not her ugly blonde ass."

I chuckled at her choice of words and was surprised to hear the ring of truth of them. She was absolutely right.

"You need to be nicer to Bella," I heard Emmett tell Rosalie sternly from the living room.

His protectiveness over my girl was shining through his thoughts. He viewed her as a kid sister and cared a lot about her. He also shared Marie's view of not liking it when people were mean or hateful towards my Bella.

"Whatever," she shot back, heading out to the garage.

I could tell from her thoughts that she was mad about the truth in Marie's words and didn't like being called out on her wrongdoings.

I removed my hand from her back to cup her face. She lifted her head from my shoulder and leaned her head into my palm. I smiled softly at her and removed the ponytail from her hair. I scooted a few silky strands to the side, so that they weren't covering half of her face and I could look into her beautiful chocolate eyes.

I kissed her button nose. "If Rosalie is nicer to Bella, will you be nicer to Rosalie?" I asked, trying to figure out a way to bring peace between my sister and the most important thing in my world.

She nodded. "If my Bell doesn't resent her, then I won't be a bitch to her. I know who my pretty Bell likes, and who she doesn't. I know who's ass I need to kick and who I'll be sweet to. I'll know if that Rose vampire has made amends with my girl or not," she informed me.

I nodded, knowing that that was the best I could expect from her. Rosalie was certainly in the wrong and had a lot of apologizing and explaining to do.

I heard Marie's stomach growl then, and glanced over at the clock, noticing that it was just about time for her dinner. 6:32 in the evening…close enough. Isabella was around for lunch and all she had was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with three apple slices.

She blushed and put her head back down on my shoulder. I chuckled at her sudden shyness about her stomach growling, but then she stuck her thumb in her mouth and I knew that Marie had turned in for the night.

My little Isabella was back to see me. I heard her sniffle, and frowned, knowing that she had been aware this whole time. I shushed her and started rubbing my hand on her back again. Soothing circles…those always seemed to work. I kept up my pacing too.

"What should I prepare for dinner, Edward?" Esme asked me from her spot in the kitchen.

I made my voice soft and soothing again before I spoke to my little angel. "Baby, what would you like to eat for dinner?"

The only response I got was a quick shrug and a sniffle. She didn't speak because of that thumb in her mouth. I was going to take it out, thinking of the bedtime rule, but thought better of it. She could have it for now…she must be awfully upset and needed as much comfort as she could get.

"Something yummy?" I lightly suggested.

She nodded and nuzzled her face into my neck.

I sighed and whispered at vampire frequency. "Just something simple, it will be for Isabella, not Marie," I informed my mother before suggesting, "Maybe some of her macaroni and cheese, or something…she likes that. Chicken for her protein and she likes your steamed corn on the cob. Is that alright?"

"Of course, dear," she answered me before I turned my attention back to Isabella.

She was awfully quiet. She had tightened her hold on me, so it mirrored the death grip that Marie had on me before she had started to relax. I buried my nose in her hair for a minute and breathed in deeply, trying to ground myself for whatever emotions Isabella would soon display.

"Hmmm…love you, baby girl," I breathed out softly.

"Love you too," she replied around her thumb, speaking in that adorable voice.

"What are you thinking?" I asked lightly after a minute of silence.

She shrugged.

"Tell me, angel…" I gently prodded.

She popped her thumb out of her mouth and used that hand to trace small circles on my collarbone as she spoke in her quiet voice. "You're _my _Edward, huh?"

"Yes."

"Bella is your's?"

I sighed. "Yes, and so are you, baby," I assured her.

"Don't let Bella forget me again…" I kissed her forehead as she spoke again. "Don't let your daddy hurt me, Edward…"

"I won't."

"I don't believe you," she said a little harshly, taking me completely off guard.

"I'm not lying," I told her incredulously. When she didn't respond, and only kept up her fingers lazy trail along my hard skin, I made my voice a bit firmer and said, "Isabella, I won't let anyone hurt you."

"Daddies like to hurt me," she said simply.

"Well, mine won't," I assured her.

"Your daddy is a doctor and they hurt me too."

"Isabella-" I started, but she cut me off.

"He gonna put me in the hop-pistol and hurt me?" she asked endearingly, mispronouncing 'hospital' in the most adorable way.

"No hospitals. I promise."

She lifted her head from my shoulder and looked into my gold eyes then. She stuck her thumb back in her mouth and gave me a curious, questioning gaze, as if she was trying to find the truth in my words, but wasn't able to and it was confusing the hell out of her. Her past experiences just wouldn't let her believe me.

"Edward…" she mumbled around her thumb.

"Hmmm?"

She seemed to be thinking about something as she took her thumb out of her mouth and grabbed a lock of her hair. She started trailing the tips of the hair strands lightly across her cheek, then looked back up into my eyes.

"He gots ugly yellow hair. He is a daddy. _And _he's a doctor," she informed me matter-of-factly.

"Uh-huh…" I trailed off, silently telling her that I already knew all of that.

She rolled her eyes, scowled at me, then suddenly yelled in my face. "He's gonna hurt me!"

I was surprised that she had turned hostile in a split second. Her and Marie yelling in people's faces was going to have to stop. I could nip it in the bud quickly with Isabella since this was her first time. Marie would take some more work, though…

"Hey!" I said firmly, keeping eye contact. "What did I just tell you, young lady? I'm not lying, he's not going to hurt you. I won't let him."

She squinted her eyes and started to actually glare at me.

_Where had my sweet baby girl gone?_

"You lie to Bella," her quiet voice accused me.

I didn't _even _want to start that discussion with her right now. About how I had to lie to leave to keep her safe and it ended up biting us both in the ass in the end. In fact, I would never be having that conversation with my five year old. Ever.

So I simply repeated, "I'm not lying to you." And then I added, "And don't yell in people's faces. It's rude," informing her of another rule.

She softened her gaze out of a glare and sniffled. "My Edward, you love me?" she asked, still twirling that lock of hair and stroking the ends along her cheek.

"Yes, very much."

"I don't wanna go away again…" she said with a shake of her head.

"It won't happen like that-" I started but she cut me off with a nod.

"Your daddy will tell Bella to forget me. He wants me to go away because he doesn't like me," she informed me.

I shook my head, wanting to clear up her misconceptions, but she continued on before I could speak up.

She raised her eyebrows at me. "Peoples with ugly yellow hair don't like dirty kike babies like me, Edward," she told me, pointing to herself as she said the word 'kike'.

My eyes flashed with anger at that word. I had let it slip out of her mouth way too much without taking action against it…and the results are more racial slurs falling from her lips with perfect ease. I should have known this would happen and just taken care of it when I had the chance, because now certainly wasn't the time.

_It's never a good time… you just don't want to punish her._

Very true.

"Isabella, that's not true. He likes you, and he's going to be your friend," I assured her before my tone took on a hard note. "And what have I been telling you about that word?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.

She shrugged and kept stroking her cheek with that lock of hair.

Shrugged?

_Had she forgotten?_

"It is one of those naughty words Isabella, and you are not allowed to say them anymore. Do you remember me telling you that?" I asked, keeping up this whole 'firm' charade.

She stuck her thumb back in her mouth and nodded. I gently grabbed her wrist and pulled it out. She furrowed her brow in frustration and whined.

"No, Isabella. Answer me," I demanded.

"Yes."

"So then, why do you keep saying those words? Do you _want _me to be angry with you?"

She shook her head and started to suck on her lips. When I gave her another hard look, she answered, "No."

"Why do you keep saying those bad words?" I repeated.

"B'cuz that's what I am, Edward," she informed me, as if it should have been obvious.

I shook my head. "No. You don't insult yourself, or put yourself down. The word is _Jewish_, Isabella, NOT kike."

She nodded, then looked down and huffed. When she looked back into my eyes, she said, "Peoples with ugly yellow hair don't like dirty _Jewish_babies like me," she repeated what she had said before, but changed that one specific word, even emphasizing it a bit for effect.

I squinted my eyes at her.

_Is she trying to be a smartass?_

"Are you trying to be a smartass, Isabella?"

"Yes."

"Well, don't," was my clever retort.

She sighed and laid her head back on my shoulder. "Edward?

I pinched the bridge of my nose, trying to calm down a bit. I didn't want to be firm with her anymore.

_She's very fragile right now…Be. Fucking. Sensitive._

"Yes, Isabella?" I responded and brought my hand to her back again. Soothing slow circles…

"Marie in trouble?" she asked hesitantly.

I sighed. "No, baby."

"She got spankins, though," she pointed out, reminding me that she was always aware.

"Yes…" I hedged.

"How come?"

"She was rude and didn't do what she was supposed to, but baby - that's over. She's not in trouble anymore," I assured her.

"Spankins hurt…" she said, then sniffled.

I cringed, wanting to change the subject. "I know."

I walked over to the bed and sat her down on the soft comforter, then sat down in front of her so that we could talk face to face. She scooted close to me so that our knees were touching.

"Edward?"

"Yes, Isabella?"

"I'm hungry."

"Dinner is being made right now, sweetheart," I informed her, noting from Esme that it should be done in about five minutes.

She stuck her thumb back in her mouth, now that I wasn't holding her hand anymore and I sighed, deciding that she really should be following all of the rules, _all _of the time. Not just picking and choosing which ones she would like to follow just because they are convenient at the time. So, that would mean that the bedtime-thumb rule still stands in full affect, after all. I shouldn't have allowed it a minute ago, it'll probably just confuse her now...

_Damn it._

"No, Isabella."

Her eyes flashed to mine, but she kept her thumb in her mouth.

"Bedtime, remember?" I asked with a raised eyebrow. "You need to start following the rules, sweetheart. Thumb at bedtime, and no more bad words," I reminded her.

She blinked slowly, keeping her eyes on mine, but kept her thumb in her mouth.

_Testing me? Again? Really? Fucking hell…_

"Do you want to be in trouble?" I asked her, implying that that would be the result of her testing me and not following the rules.

She shook her head.

I gave her a hard look, silently telling her that I wanted an actual answer, so she mumbled one around her thumb.

"No."

I softened my gaze then, "Take your thumb out of your mouth, please," I told her, giving her a chance to do it on her own this time.

I shouldn't have to pull it out of her mouth every time, she should just do as she's told.

Four seconds later it was still in her mouth, so I closed my eyes and sighed. I was going to lean against the headboard and get ready to show Isabella that I meant business, but when I moved my hand to start scooting back, she immediately popped it out of her mouth.

I had to keep myself from smiling, knowing that she had guessed correctly what was going to happen. I was relieved that she had finally listened though. Next time, she wouldn't get that little four-second window of leniency.

I found myself brooding over the idea of having to be more firm with her. Stop giving her so many chances, and reminders. I didn't like that…didn't like it at all.

"Edward?"

"Yeah?" I asked softly, keeping my position in front of her now.

"You gonna spank me?" she asked with worried eyes.

"Not anymore…you listened, didn't you?" I pointed out.

"But you were gonna?" she hedged.

I nodded, confirming her suspicions.

"But…but I'm just little," she said in a small voice.

I just smiled softly at her, remembering pictures from Bella's childhood album and knowing that that's how Isabella still viewed herself.

"I know," I said simply.

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

"Can I have a lolly? Pretty please?"

"No, baby. Dinner will be ready in a minute."

She crawled into my lap then, and kissed my cheek. "Edward?"

"Yeah?"

"I got tears on my face," she said, then sniffled.

I suddenly remembered the night that we had that little girl, Katy, over here for dinner with Bella. Marie had wiped the child's face with a warm rag after she had cried.

"Do you want me to get you a warm wash cloth?"

She nodded, so I scooted her off of my lap and headed for the bathroom. I grabbed a small cloth out of the linen shelves and ran hot water over it. After I wrung out the excess water, I brought it back over to Isabella, who was still sitting where I had left her on the bed.

She took it from me, and quickly ran it over her face, then handed it back. "Edward?"

"Yes, baby?"

She stood on the bed then, and started to casually hop around. "Your daddy living with us?"

"Yeah, he lives downstairs," I informed her.

She looked at me then, and an unfathomable look crossed over her face.

"Do you got a basement? He lives down there?" she asked hesitantly, but never stopping her jumps and skips across the large surface of the bed.

"Yes baby, we have a basement. No, he doesn't live down there."

Her eyes flashed to mine as she asked, "Wh…what do you got in your um…basement?"

She was trying to feign nonchalance and mask her emotions behind her bouncing, but I wasn't stupid. I could smell her rush of adrenaline and I knew why she was nervous all of a sudden. From what Bella has told me, most of her abuse had taken place in a basement.

"Furniture and boxes," I answered her.

She didn't respond, just kept on hopping around. Esme let me know then that her food was done, so I interrupted Isabella's bouncing.

"Off the bed, sweetheart, it's time for dinner," I told her.

She stopped bouncing around and sat down on the bed before crawling over to the edge to hop down. I held my hand out for her, which she took and we made our way downstairs.

On the way down the steps, Isabella touched the railing.

"Edward?"

"Yes, baby?"

"Can I slide down it?" she asked, fingering the smooth surface of the wood railing.

"No," I said firmly, wanting to make it very clear that stair-sliding was definitely a bad thing.

An image of her sliding down the railing and falling off passed through my mind, and it tightened my chest with anxiety. I really wouldn't hesitate to spank her ass, like I had been, if I caught her doing that.

"But I want to…"

"No."

"But it's shiny," she said, looking at it longingly.

"No."

"But can I climb on it?" she asked hopefully.

"No."

"But I-" she started, but I cut her off.

"But I said no," I told her, my tone one of finality.

We were downstairs now, and Isabella was pouting because I had denied her something to climb on.

_God forbid she didn't get her way..._

"Pretty please?"

_Hmm...she's really pushing it tonight._

But I wasn't so completely clueless as to not realize that it was because of this afternoon's events, and her intense feelings associated with them. Some of which would be insecurity and fear...of both abandonment and rejection. And her inability to trust my vow to keep her safe in this matter must be making it just that much more worse for her. It only took common sense on my part to realize that she would probably be acting out for both attention, and reassurance that no matter what she did, I would still love her and want to keep her around. It was typical child phsycology. Almost fucking textbook, the concept was so simple.

_Well, do your worst, baby Isabella...I am sooo prepared to give you any kind of attention you need_ I mentally challenged her.

I gave her a stern look and shook my head before I lightly kissed her pout away. "Go climb into your chair and eat your dinner, Isabella."

She walked around the dining room table and plopped down in her seat. She leaned against the high back of the chair and rested her head on it. She started sucking on her lips, and a second later, Esme brought her plate of food out from the kitchen and set it down in front of Isabella, along with a glass of juice with a plastic crazy-straw in it.

I had picked up a pack of those at the store yesterday when I saw that she was eyeing them intently with a smile on her face.

Isabella grabbed the cup and sucked up some juice through her straw, the corners of her mouth turning up in a smile. When she was done taking a drink, she leaned back against the chair and said sweetly, "Thank you, Edward's mommy."

Esme smiled at her. "Your welcome, dear. Would you like anything else?"

"A lolly," she said simply with a short nod of her head.

"No..." I drawled out with a shake of my head.

At my answer, Esme turned and walked into the living room to sit with Carlisle and watch our exchange from afar, as always.

"But I want it..." she whined and kicked her feet out, clearly on the verge of starting to throw a genuine toddler tantrum.

She hadn't had one of those yet, and I knew it would be _nothing _like Marie's famous tantrums. Marie's were teenage classic...I have a feeling that Isabella's were going to have a unique twist all her own.

"If you finish all of your dinner, you can have one, but not if you don't stop that whining. What is your new rule about whining?" I asked, wanting to remind her of that rule too.

It was a fairly new one...just given to her this morning.

She sobered up and said simply, "No whining, or you'll fuck my mouth."

"What? No! That's _not_ what I said," I said harshly.

She looked up at me innocently, noticing my tone. "No whining, or you'll spank my ass," she corrected herself.

I set my elbows up on the table and put my face in my hands, groaning...trying desperately to get those godforsaken images of fucking my Bella's mouth out of my head, once again. I replaced the rush of lust with a rush of anger at my instinctual reaction to her words...and her slip with those words. After a few seconds, once I reigned in my emotions, I lifted my face from my hands and looked at Isabella to see that she was watching me intently and hadn't touched her food yet. I didn't trust my voice, so I just nodded at her correction.

"Will you fuck it too?" she asked then.

I dropped my hands down to the tabletop then, and exhaled sharply. "Goddamn it, Isabella..." my voice unexpectedly rough and husky.

_Now I have to banish those images too? My God..._

The rush of lust was almost too much to bear. Thank God for Jasper and his blessed abilities. He immediately sensed my current problem and wiped away the waves of lust crashing over my body.

"No!" I told her firmly.

"Why? Don't you _want_ to?" she asked sweetly.

I furrowed my brow. "What?" I asked incredulously.

She shrugged and picked up her fork. "I'm a pretty kike baby with a fuckable little ass, donchya know..."

"My _God_, Isabella - Stop!"

_This is so fucked up._

_I got your back, man_ Jasper assured me in his thoughts as he started to take away the fit of rage that was slowly building inside of me.

When I was calm again, and she was eating a bite of her macaroni, I spoke again.

"I told you, not ten minutes ago, to stop using that word. Didn't I?" I prodded.

She nodded as she chewed.

"And you went and said it anyway. No. Lolly. After dinner." I said firmly.

She scowled at me, and after she swallowed she said, "But I _want _it!" screaming out the word 'want'.

"No."

She kicked her legs out and started to cry a little. "But I wasn't whining..." she said as she looked at me with those watery chocolate eyes.

I looked away quickly before they sucked me in, and I gave in to her. I really needed to work on my willpower with her.

"I said no."

She cried again and threw down her fork, crossing her arms over her chest. "Want a lolly..." she whimpered pathetically.

"Maybe next time, you'll listen. Hmm?"

She sniffled and wiped her eyes, done crying now. "I'ma tell your mommy on you. You lied," she said indignantly.

"I did not lie, young lady. I told you that you would be in trouble if you broke that rule again."

She scowled at the truth in my words.

"Would you prefer that I spank you? 'Cause I could do that and then you could have your lolly afterwards..." I suggested lightly.

"Nooo..." she whined with a shake of her head.

"Stop whining," I reminded her.

She did and picked her fork back up, taking a sharp stab at her chicken, venting her anger out on the unsuspecting piece of meat.

Carlisle joined us at the table then, shooting me a sympathetic look. I nodded at him, acknowleding his thoughts of sympathy and disbelief of Isabella's occasional word vomit.

"Hello, Isabella," he greeted her, taking a seat on the other side of me so that he wouldn't be too close to her, making her unnecessarily uncomfortable.

"Hi," she huffed indignantly and then shot him a bitter look that clearly said 'I hate you and your stupid yellow hair', before she brought a piece of chicken to her mouth.

"How are you this evening, Isabella?" he asked, always keeping his voice soft and bedside manner active around my skittish little girl.

"Mad," she said with a scowl on her face.

Her scowl was focused on her plate of food, but soon it shifted to Carlisle. She kept her brow furrowed and eyes fixed on him as she sucked her pouty bottom lip into her mouth.

"Why is that, sweetie?" he asked.

"B'cuz you don't like me and want me to go away like the other mean doctor man, and my Edward is being _really_ mean to me," she informed him, then muttered "lolly nazi" off to the side, making me crack a small smile.

_Wow, she's serious when it comes to her fucking lollipops..._

"I like you, Isabella, and I promise that I'm not a 'mean doctor man'. How is your Edward being really mean to you?" he asked, his thoughts letting me know that he was very happy about Isabella's responsiveness to him tonight.

She huffed and gave him a pleading look, turning on her adorable charm. "He said that I could have my lolly after dinner, but then he changeded his mind and said that I couldn't. But I wasn't even whining!" she said, throwing up her hands a little in exasperation. "Can you tell him to gimme a lolly?" she whispered then.

He smiled at her whispered plea and asked, "Did you happen to say something naughty that maybe you weren't supposed to...?" he hedged.

"No," she said bluntly with a shake of her head, looking him square in the eye.

_Huh...she's almost as good a liar as me._

He raised his eyebrows at her blatant lie.

"Isabella, are you lying?" I asked, calling her out on it.

"Yes," she said simply, then took a bite of her corn.

"Why did you lie?" Carlisle asked her curiously.

"B'cuz I can and I wanted to," she replied and attacked her crazy straw again, taking three long pulls of juice from it.

_That's going to be a problem Carlisle_ warned me through his thoughts.

I gave him a nod and narrowed my eyes at Isabella.

"Edward?" she said, looking up from her cup.

"Yes?"

"Wanna cuddle..." she told me while giving me a longing look.

"C'mere," I said, holding my arm out to her.

She smiled and got out of her chair. She sat down on my lap and I grabbed her plate, scooting it over in front of me, then wrapped my arm around her waist, holding her close and dropped a kiss onto her shoulder.

"I don't want you to lie anymore, Isabella," I told her quietly.

"Why?" she asked and picked her fork back up.

"Because it's naughty, and I said so," I stated, giving her the universal parent-typical answer.

"You lie," she countered.

_Damn it..._

"That doesn't mean you have to, or that you are going to be allowed to. No lying," I told her.

She didn't respond, just continued to chew her food.

"Did you hear me?" I prodded gently.

"Marie says you're a hypocrite," she blurted out.

"That's irrelevant, Isabella. No lying," I repeated, hating that what Marie told her was true.

_Way to go on setting an example, Cullen. Fucking awesome. Dumbass._

"What's a hypocrite?" she asked, succesfully dodging an acknowledgement of her new rule.

"Somebody that does something, and then turns around and tells people that they can't do that same thing," Carlisle explained from beside us so that I didn't have to.

"Okay," she said lightly and stuck a piece of chicken in her mouth.

"Isabella..."

"Hmm?" she hummed around chewing her food.

"No lying," I repeated her rule. She didn't answer so I squeezed her hip in warning. "Do you understand?"

"Uh-huh," she replied with a little nod, so I relaxed my grip on her hip and leaned back onto the chair.

"I don't like your hair," Isabella said then, looking to her left at Carlisle now.

"I know, and I'm sorry...there's nothing I can do about that. But I think you're a smart little girl...I think you can judge somebody on their personality and actions, not their hair color," he told her with a small smile.

She shook her head a little and said, "I wouldn't count on it."

_Well, at least she's not shy around him anymore..._

I jostled her a little by lifting my leg up an inch and bringing it back down, getting her attention.

"Isabella, don't be rude," I admonished her.

"Edward, don't be mean," she countered.

"I'm not being mean," I pointed out.

"Then give me my lolly," she demanded.

"Do you _want_ a spanking?" I asked, reminding her of my compromise and getting a little tired of her attitude tonight.

"Nope," she said, then smacked her lips together and pushed her plate of food away.

"You're not getting a lollipop tonight because of your language," I reminded her.

"Are you ready for your first therapy session tomorrow, Isabella?" Carlisle asked softly.

"Are you ready for me to cut all your hair off tonight while you sleep?" she asked, mocking his tone, sounding almost condenscending with it, and avoiding his question.

"Isabella, that's enough," I said curtly.

"I don't sleep," he replied bluntly, becoming a little amused at her persistance with her hatred for his hair. Simply because it was 'yellow'.

It really was becoming ridiculous.

"Me and Marie won't let you make Bella forget me again. She won't leave me, no matter what you do or say, Mister," she informed him, keeping up their eye contact.

"I'm sorry for the misunderstandings, Isabella...but I'm pretty sure you have the wrong idea when it comes to these therapy sessions. I don't want anyone to abandon you, and I'm not going to hurt you. We are just going to sit and talk, like we are doing right now, sweetie," he assured her.

"I don't believe you," she told him in the same harsh way that she had said to me earlier.

I squeezed her hip again, reminding her to be polite.

"I'm sorry for that..." he said gently.

"You are not, you're a liar liar pants on fire. I know b'cuz it takes one to know one," she pointed out.

"Isabella, be nice," I told her.

"Edward, be nice," she mocked me.

Okay, I knew that she was going to act out tonight, but I'm beginning to run out of fucking patience.

_She is pushing you, Edward...that is becoming very clear. It's almost as if it's intentional_ he thought at me, but kept eye contact with Isabella.

I nodded at him because I already knew that she was. I'm not stupid. But I also can't overreact to it because it's quite obvious that she's aiming for the reassurance that I will always love her no matter what happens, or how bad she behaves...that I'll always want to keep her.

She cocked her head to the side before saying, "My Edward wants to keep me too, so fuck off."

And once again, those words of profanity sounded all wrong coming from her adorable child-like voice.

He smiled gently at her, unaffected by her attempts to get a rise out of him, but I moved my leg to the side and swatted her ass. It was barely a flick of my wrist, but I knew it would be a hard hit for her.

She jumped a little and started to cry.

"Owwie.." she sniffled.

I had just got done spanking Marie for mouthing off to Carlisle, among other things, and it wouldn't be fair to Marie if I let Isabella get away with it, and not her. And Marie would know because she is aware of what's going on right now.

"Stop it. Now. That's enough," I spoke lowly in her ear.

She nodded, bringing a fist up to her eye and rubbed away some tears, then quieted down. It's not like she was being loud in the first place, just a few whimpering noises and a couple of tears. She leaned back into my chest and rested her head on my shoulder, then sniffled again. I kept my arm around her waist and waited for her breathing to even out.

"So, are you ready for your first therapy session tomorrow?" Carlisle softly repeated.

She shook her head.

"Why not, sweetie?" he asked. "It won't be that bad..." he said, trying to placate her.

"I wanna go play outside," she said, ignoring him.

"Answer him, Isabella," I insisted.

"Don't wanna get a doctor, Edward..." she whined.

I sighed. "We've been over this, baby," I reminded her and lightly ran my fingertips up and down along her right arm. "You're getting one." I said, then quickly added, "You've got one," correcting myself.

"I want a lolly, Edward."

"No, Isabella."

"I wanna swing on my swing, Edward."

"Maybe later."

"I wanna go on my jump-a-lene, Edward."

"Maybe."

"I wanna play outside, Edward."

"Stop avoiding the subject, baby."

"I wanna draw with my pretty chalk, Edward."

"Isabella..."

"I want my sparkly play-doh, Edward."

"Stop it."

"I wanna watch my princess movie, Edward."

"Sweetheart-"

"I wanna play with my dolly, Edward."

"We need to finish this talk first, baby," I said softly in her ear, never stopping my lightly trailing fingers.

"My baby needs her jammies on for bedtime, Edward."

"Baby girl-"

"I have to get her dressed b'cuz that's what good Mommies do, Edward."

"Your dolly can wait."

"I want a pop, Edward."

"No, you don't get desert because of your language."

"Edwaaard..." she whined and arched her back off of my chest in a clearly agitated gesture.

_Get her to focus_ Carlisle thought at me, as I heard Emmett chuckling at Isabella's attempts to distract me.

"Stop whining, love. I'm not going to repeat myself on that rule again," I said, exasperated and ran a hand roughly through my hair before adding, "I don't want to spank you again, so just _stop_ it."

"I wanna draw, Edward."

"Maybe after the conversation-"

"I wanna color, Edward."

"No."

"I wanna play with my big doodle, Edward" she said, referring to her new MagnaDoodle I had bought for her.

"Not until you talk to Carlisle. He asked you a question," I pointed out.

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes, Isabella."

"No, Edward."

"Stop it."

"Stop it," she said, mocking me again.

_God, give me strength..._

I sighed and Carlisle repeated his question for her again. It frustrated me because he shouldn't have to do that just because Isabella wanted to be a brat right now.

"Why aren''t you ready for your session in the morning, sweetie?" he asked.

She sighed and was quiet for a minute. "I'm not ready b'cuz you're going to hurt me with your needles and purity knives. I know you got 'em and I can tell b'cuz of your ugly yellow hair. All of _you people_ have stuff like that to hurt the kike babies with. I may be small, but I'm not stupid," she pointed out with a small glare. "I'm wise to your act, doctor meanie," she informed him as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Marie let me know all about _you_ and your _plans_. You're the one who's gonna tell Bella to get rid of us. But we're not leavin," she insisted with a hard look in his direction.

_Well isn't she just too fucking cute when she tries to 'tell it like it is'..._

"I have no needles and no purity knives," he assured her.

"Sure," she said nonchalantly, clearing showing her insistant disbelief in his words.

"Well..." Carlisle started, then sighed. "I guess the only way for you to start believing me is to see for yourself," he replied in his ever-present gentle tone with her.

She latched her hands onto my arm that was currently around her waist and shook her head. "Not goin anywhere with you..."

I kissed her temple and murmured, "Not tonight, but you do have therapy in the morning, baby."

She gasped. "No Edward, wanna stay with you..." she pleaded.

"Shhh..." I whispered in her ear. "I'll be here."

She loosened her grip on my arm and said, "Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"You come with me?"

"No baby, you need private time with the doctor so you guys can learn to be friends," I explained.

She pouted and whined until her eyes eventually watered and I could smell the salt of the developing tears. "Don't _wanna_ be friends with him. He's gonna hurt me. Don't leave me alone with the doctor, Edward," she pleaded.

"Stop it," I told her, referring to her whining and overreaction.

She sniffled, so I continued. "I'll be here. Just probably in our room, or living room. But baby, therapy is going to be your private time with Carlisle," I insisted.

She shook her head, "No Edward, I wanna stay with you..."

"I'll be here," I repeated.

She pressed the back of her head into my shoulder and kicked out her legs, starting to cry again.

"Nooo...come with me."

I sighed. "I think it's time for bed, Isabella," I told her, noticing her constant restless and whiny state.

The tears and cries immediately stopped then, as she exclaimed, "No! I wanna play, Edward."

She immediately started to get off my lap, so I stood with her and so did Carlisle.

"I'll see you in the morning, Isabella," he told her.

She looked up at him and shook her head. "Nuh-uh you won't," she muttered, then walked away towards the back doors.

"Isabella, where are you going?" I asked.

"Play outside."

"No. Upstairs. Now."

"Nooo..." she whined and stomped her foot.

I raised my eyebrows at her, giving her a hard look and daring her to tell me 'no' again, or whine again, or stomp her fucking foot again.

_I bet Marie taught her that..._

When she didn't move away from the door, I stepped in her direction.

She moved then, and started to go back towards the stair case. It didn't escape my notice how she tried to discreetly cover her bottom with her hands behind her back as she walked by me.

Yeah...she knows she's in trouble.

When we were back in our room, I had intended to talk to her about her behavior downstairs, but Isabella was quick to get her sketch pad out and a pack of markers, almost like she was on a mission. She sat down on the floor, her legs folded under herself so that she was on her knees, sitting back on her heels.

I sat down with her and watched as she drew a picture of the same purity knife that she had drawn earlier today with her sidewalk chalk outside. She had intense focus and concentration on her work, barely noticing my body beside her. When she was done with that picture, she ripped the page out of the sketch pad, and laid it gently on the carpet to the right of her. Then she picked up a black marker and started to make quick work of another piece. This one was a magnified demonstration of a syringe with a needle at the tip. When she was finished, she ripped that picture out also, and laid it down next to the picture of a purity knife. Her focus went straight back to the sketch pad and started all over again. This picture was of a sharp sewing needle with a piece of black thread hanging from it. That picture got ripped out too and placed side-by-side with the others.

Two drawings later, and she had a picture of a purity knife, drenched in blood. A typical doctor's needle. A sewing needle with black thread. What I recognized as a mouth ball-gag. And then we had a detailed, intricate drawing of coiled thick rope.

I kept my intrigued, but confused gaze on these pictures, wondering what significance each of them had, until I heard her soft, adorable voice calling me back to reality.

She turned to me then and asked, "Edward, you lie to me?"

"No, baby. No lying..." I assured her quickly.

She pointed to her pile of pictures. "Does your daddy got any of these?"

I skimmed over them with my eyes one last time before I shook my head. "No, baby. He doesn't," I said softly.

She stared at me for a minute before crawling into my lap. "Promise?"

"Promise."

"Swear it?"

"I swear it, baby girl," I reassured her with a quick kiss on her button nose.

"He gonna cut me if I'm bad?"

"No," I said firmly.

"Give me shots that burn my skin and make me all sleepy?"

"No."

"Put a ball in my mouth and strap it around the back of my head if I cry or say bad words?"

"No..." I said and could feel my anger growing with her odd questions.

She rubbed her left eye with her fist as she asked, "Tie me down so he can put a needle through my little baby cuntie lips and sew them up together? Make me stay like that on a time-out?"

_Holy shit..._

"No," I growled out.

"Tie me down so he can fuck my ass?"

_Goddamn it..._

"No," I growled out. Again.

"Promise?"

The rumbling in my chest continued as I growled lowly.

"Promise..."

My eyes black with fury now that I knew the significance of those goddamn pictures.

"Swear?"

"I fucking swear," I growled, my upper lip curling up on instinct as I kept my gaze on those pictures.

"Oh shit..." I heard Alice say as Jasper started to intervene on my emotions.

"I want those pictures, Edward," Carlisle told me from the living room.

"I'm going to go find that motherfucker. See how he likes my brand of torture that I will inflict upon him. I am sick of this shit," Emmett stated.

_Yeah, like I hadn't already thought of that..._

I had done my fucking research and found out that James Marshall Crowley, AKA Jim, is already dead. He was found raped and stabbed to death in the shower room at his prison three years ago.

_What a goddamn shame._

Otherwise, me and my brothers would have had a field day with him by now.

My facial features were relaxed now, as was my breathing, all thanks to my bro, Jazz. I would have to buy him a fucking car, or something, for helping me as much as he has been lately. I have found myself truly grateful for his talent.

I had Isabella on my lap, enveloped in my arms, and was breathing in her scent when she asked, "Can we watch my Cars movie?"

"After we talk..."

"Kay."

I leaned forward and gathered up the drawings, putting them in her sketch pad and flipping the cover closed, remembering what Bella had said about keeping Isabella's creations away from her. If Carlisle wanted to show her...fine. But I'm not getting dragged into that shit storm. He's on his own with that one.

"Baby...you know you that have to go to therapy with Carlisle in the morning," I reminded her.

"Yah-huh, but he don't got those things?" she asked, pointing over to the flipped shut sketch pad, referring to her drawings.

"No, he doesn't," I assured her.

She nodded.

I kissed her temple softly and prayed that she would talk about this. I didn't want another episode like I had earlier today with Marie where I had to actually put her over my knee just to get her to fucking _say something._

I sighed deeply, then asked, "Why were you a bad girl downstairs at dinner, Isabella?"

"B'cuz I had bad feelings, Edward," she said simply with a delicate little shrug.

I nodded, glad that she was cooperating, and started softly trailing my fingers along her spine. "Why did you have those bad feelings, baby?"

"B'cuz I'm scared."

"Why are you scared?"

"B'cuz I don't like Daddies, Edward. The hurt me and like it, it makes their dick hard."

I growled at that, but she continued on. "And I don't like the mean doctors. And I don't wanna go away again. And I don't want Bella to forget 'bout me again and not be my friend no more. And I don't wanna get hurt again. And I want you to go and be in the therapy room with me, but you won't be. It all makes me so sad and very mad," she explained in her soft, quiet voice.

I nodded at her simple explanation and tightened my hold on her. I was so relieved that getting her to talk was a lot simpler then getting Marie to talk when she was feeling upset.

"I love you, baby girl..."

"Love you too," she mumbled.

"You don't have to feel bad, baby...no one is going to hurt you anymore," I said softly.

She gave me a little nod. "Sorry for bein' bad," she whispered, then kissed my cheek.

"I know sweetheart, it's okay," I assured her and kissed her forehead.

After a few more minutes of holding her, she asked about her movie again, so I got up and put the movie Cars on for her. She grabbed her doll and hopped up onto the bed, starting to change it's outfit again, repeating what she had said before about it needing to be changed into pajamas for bedtime. When she was done changing it's clothes, she held a play bottle to it's mouth for two minutes, and then tucked the doll back into it's little plastic basinet on the floor against the wall. She grabbed her MagnaDoodle off of the desk, then made her way back over towards me.

"I'm a good Mommy, huh?" she asked me as she crawled back onto the bed.

"Yes, baby. You fed your dolly and tucked her in for bed."

She nodded with a proud smile on her face and sat down next to me, then started to randomly doodle things on her MagnaDoodle that she had placed in her lap, while occasionally fixing her attention back onto the movie that was playing on the TV.

She giggled at the screen and said, "Ta-Mater is funny, Edward..."

"Yes, he is," I agreed lightly with a smile.

When she got bored with her MagnaDoodle, she turned to look at me.

"Wanna cuddle, Edward..."

"C'mere," I said and invitingly held out my arms for her.

She snuggled into my side and started lightly running her fingertips across my chest, collarbone and neck. I kissed her forehead and held her close as the rest of the movie played out. When the end credits started rolling, she yawned, and I was instantly reminded to check the clock. I noticed that it was only 8:34pm and breathed a sigh of relief. She still had to take a bath and suck down another chocolate protein shake before bed.

"Ready for your bath, baby?" I asked as I sat us back up into a sitting position.

She nodded. "I get bubbles again?" she asked hopefully.

"Yes, angel you can have bubbles again."

"Does Ariel wanna come out and play with me again?" she asked, referring to her bath time mermaid doll.

"Yes, why wouldn't she?"

She shrugged. "We kinda had a fight last night..." she informed me.

"Oh, really? What about?" I asked suddenly intrigued...by an imaginary argument between Isabella and a damn doll.

_What. The. Hell._

"She said that only she could sing the songs b'cuz they were her's in her movie, but I wanted to sing 'em too, but she told me 'no' b'cuz they were her songs and only she's allowed to sing 'em," she explained.

"Oh...well, you tell her that if you want to sing the songs, then that's what you're going to do. Don't let your dolly boss you around, baby," I told her, playing along.

She seemed to think for a few seconds before she said with determination, "I think I _will_ tell her b'cuz I'm a big girl, huh?"

"Yes," I agreed.

"Okay."

"Alright, then," I said,making my way over to the bathroom and wondering what events tonight's bath time would bring.

Could she manage it by herself?

Would she still need my help?

Ooooh, would I get to wash her hair again?

Is it wrong that I want to wash her hair again?

Why is it that the only opportunity I have to see my Bella's exquisite naked form, is when her five year old personality is active?

And, God...is it _okay_ that I'm okay with that?

_Christ, when did things get so damn complicated..._


	23. Battles

EPOV

"Sweetie pie, just tilt your head back for me, okay?" I persuaded gently.

"Owwie, Edward…" she cried pitifully, tears starting to stream down her cheeks.

Well, at least this time, tears were a good thing and would actually help me in this matter.

I had set up Isabella's bath for her, bubbles and all, and she had been doing pretty good all by herself for a while. I had been in our bedroom, reading and catching up on what was going on with Claire and Shane in Morganville, while listening to Isabella's splashes and giggles and singing. About ten minutes or so into my book, I heard Isabella's whimpers, soon followed by her calling my name.

She had followed my advice and tried to be a big girl by washing her own hair tonight. It was ridiculous how much I loathed the idea of telling her to try and do it by herself, because I wanted to do it. By God, it was a chance to wash and play with her long, silky, _mmmmm_ smell so good locks, but I passed up the golden opportunity to keep myself out of the way of temptation. Bella's body was just too fucking sexy for her own good and I didn't know if I would survive keeping Isabella's bath time G-rated for two nights in a row.

But it proved possible when tears were involved, because I was feeling nothing but anxiety at Isabella's cries and sympathy for her down right sucky situation. Poor kid got soap in her eyes and they were burning her something fierce, apparently.

So here I was, sitting on the edge of the tub with a cup full of bubble-free water, trying to convince my angel to hold her head back so that I could pour the water over her face and eyes.

"Baby girl, just tilt your head back," I tried again.

She squeezed her eyes shut. "Edward, the soapies are hurtin me…" she whined as she finally tilted her head back.

"I know, hold your breath," I told her.

She let out one more cry. "Kay," she relented, then gasped in a breath of air and held it in, her rosy cheeks puffed out with her effort.

I slowly poured the cup of water over her face, telling her not to squeeze her eyes shut so tight, so that the water could help rinse away the soap that had gotten in there. She listened well, and after three more cups of water, her cries quieted down and she opened her eyes. I closely examined them and saw that they were a bit red due to irritation, but other than that, she was fine.

"Edward?" she sniffled, done crying now.

"Yes, love?"

"Bella said she could buy me some no-cry soapies. When she gonna do that?" she asked, grabbing her forgotten Ariel doll out of the water again, and making it swim around the tub.

"I can get you some from the store tomorrow, okay? That way, the next time you take a bath, you can try to wash your hair on your own again, like a big girl," I suggested.

"Yah-huh, I'munna try again b'cuz I'm a big girl," she decided after a minute.

I was going to go back to my book in the bedroom then, to give her and those perky breasts some privacy, but she spoke up, wanting to have a conversation. And who was I to deny my little angel with that creamy, _naked_ and _wet_ skin, some quality talk time?

"Edward?"

"Hmm?" I replied, swallowing back some lust-induced venom.

"When is Mommy coming back from outta town?" she asked, then started to suck on her top lip and twirl her doll's hair.

"I don't know, baby…I hear she's pretty busy, though," I hedged, not exactly sure how to talk about her neglectful, clueless, stupid mother with her. She was in Florida, and as far as she was concerned, Isabella didn't exist anymore.

The minute I learned about Marie, I lost all respect for Charlie. And the minute I learned about Isabella, I lost what little respect I had for Renee.

_Damn, Bella has shitty excuses for parents._

She smiled at that, taking me off guard. I didn't think she would be happy about the prospect of not seeing her mother again for a long time, if ever again, but I could tell that she was.

"Good," she said quietly and turned her attention back to her doll.

"Isabella, do you miss your mommy?" I asked softly, all of a sudden very unsure of her relationship with Renee.

She shook her head delicately. "Nope," she responded with a smack of her lips. She looked up from her doll then, and said, "Mommy let Daddy hurt me and Bella. And then her and the mean doctor man made Bella forget all 'bout me. I don't like her. She is a bitch. And I want a lolly," she finished with a nod and a hopeful look.

I shook my head. "No, Isabella. And stop asking for one, that's quite enough, angel," I scolded her gently.

She had asked for a lollipop six times since we left the dinner table. Her behavior this evening certainly hadn't called for a reward.

She pouted and looked back down at her doll. I relaxed my 'stern face' and smiled softly down at her when she wasn't looking at me anymore. She was just so fucking beautiful…I couldn't let her know that though. My five year old definitely wasn't interested in anything that my Bella and Marie were interested in.

And you better fucking believe that if it was either of them in this tub in front of me right now, in all her naked, wet glory, I wouldn't hesitate to join her in there and ravish her body…bringing her pleasure to heights she had never even imagined, or thought possible. I may not feel very comfortable with the concept of intercourse with my fragile, human girlfriend, but that didn't mean I was ever opposed to using my hands and mouth to their full advantage.

God, just from the smell of her when she gets aroused by my very presence drives me mad with lust. It's like I have an instinctual need to satisfy her desires, simply due to the fact that she is my mate. When my senses pick up her aroused scent, my thoughts always go directly to imagining her divine _taste_ on my tongue, making my fingers want to simultaneously search out and skim her body until they find her warm, tight, wet sex and just play with her for as long as I wish. I have a deep, primal need to keep her at my mercy until her little heart is content and her body is exhausted from the multiple-orgasmic pleasure that only I could bring her to over and over…and over again.

_Okay, Cullen change the thought process…_

Right.

I had inconspicuously adjusted my pants that had become too tight all of a sudden, just as Isabella lifted her head back up to look at me.

"Edward?"

I cleared my throat to get rid of the huskiness that would no doubt be there, then answered her softly, "Yes, baby?"

"Bella is my bestest friend…" she said, then dunked her doll under water, before whispering confidentially as if in secret, "I love her even more than my Ariel dolly. And lotts more than my baby in the bedroom," she finished with a nod, then brought her doll back out of the water to twirl it's hair some more.

I smiled. "Do you?"

"Yes," she smiled back. "We use'ta play all the time, but she's all growed up now. Doesn't wanna play dollies with me anymore. She plays with you and Marie," she informed me, then she cocked her head to the side and asked curiously, "Do you like playin with Bella and Marie?"

I nodded and said, "Yes, I do," before lowering my voice to a whisper like she had done a second ago. "I love them," I told her confidentially.

She nodded, then whispered back, "They love you too…"

"Well, that's good," I told her, my voice back to normal now.

"But Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"You're _mine_, huh…" she said seriously while intently focusing her gaze on mine.

"Yes, baby," I softly reassured her, happy with my prediction that she would be the possessive one of the bunch.

She smiled. "Kay…"

"Edward?"

"Yeah?"

"Bella's not gonna forget me again b'cuz I'm her bestest friend in the _whole world_ and she said she was sorry. We'll never havta be apart ever again," she told me with a small smile.

I bit my lip and looked at her skeptically, wondering if that was true or not. Had Bella accepted Isabella again? Had she missed her childhood companion? If that were true, then therapy would be even more challenging than Carlisle had originally thought.

"What did she say, baby?" I asked, trying to get more information and knowing that Carlisle was listening.

She nodded and said, "Bella said that she never stopped lovin me and only did what she was sposta do for the mean doctors to leave us alone," she informed me.

She rubbed her irritated eyes before she spoke again. "But I was always here, y'know…only lost and forgotten 'bout for a lil while. And I always will be here b'cuz I love her and I can keep the hurt away. I remember 'bout daddy and our owwies so that she don't have to. I do what she needs me to b'cuz she's my bestest friend forever. I love her very, very much," she told me seriously with a nod of her head.

She sighed then, and spoke again. "Mommy tried to keep us apart, but now that bitch is outta town and won't ruin it for us again," she said, then picked up the red soap crayon and started to draw on her arm with it.

I nodded, and said, "I'm glad you two are friends again…"

It was the only response I could come up with at the moment. I actually believed her. And I didn't know if I was happy about that, or not. I mean, my first instinct was happiness. I love Isabella and don't want her going anywhere…but at the same time, that is the _opposite_ of Bella getting better.

Bella's healing from this disorder isn't about her 'forgetting' Marie and Isabella, like my poor girls had been freaking out about all goddamn day long. It's about Bella's mind fusing them together, in a way…for lack of a better phrase. Marie and Isabella would still be there, just combined together into Bella as one. So that my Bella could be whole, the way it's _supposed_ to be, instead of her being split into three different people. When she got better, she would be just one; a combination of my three girls.

She smiled brightly up at me. "Me too! Maybe we should celebrate with some lollies…" she suggested slyly, and even fluttered her eyelashes at me a bit.

I had to work _really_ hard to keep from laughing and even harder to compose my face back into the 'stern look' I had learned worked fairly well with Isabella.

"What did I say?" I asked in a firm tone.

"That you're happy me and Bella are bestest friends again," she responded cheekily, turning on her charm with an adorable smile.

I internally smiled at her response, but kept my features composed and replied in the same firm tone, "You know what I'm talking about, young lady. What's going to happen if you ask me for a lolly one more time?" I asked her.

Her face fell then, and she mumbled sullenly, "Gonna get in trouble…"

"Smart girl."

She sighed and switched out her red crayon for a blue one. "Edward?"

"Yes, baby?"

"When is bath time gonna be over?"

I raised my eyebrows and asked, "Did you wash everywhere, or did you just do your hair?"

"Everywhere…I'm so fresh and so clean, clean," she sang lightly with a smile.

"It can be done now, angel. Wait until I'm back in the bedroom to get out of the tub though, and then follow me back in there. I'll have your jammies laid out for you on the bed. And make sure you squeeze all the water out of your hair, too. Okay?" I said, then stood from the edge of the tub.

She nodded, so I walked out of the bathroom, into our room and towards the dresser. Opening the drawers, I eventually picked out her black bikini style cotton panties and a shorts with camisole top pajama set…it was black and red, with a 'Good Girl Gone Bad' logo on it.

_How appropriate_ I thought, thinking of Isabella's behavior tonight.

When Isabella came out of the bathroom, I smiled at her only slightly damp hair and kissed her forehead, before going into the bathroom to clean up and give her some privacy to get dressed.

Once I had the tub drained and rinsed out, I put the bath toys away under the sink and dried the little water mess on the floor. After I put the wet towel in the hamper, I grabbed her hairbrush off of the counter and headed back to the bedroom.

I saw Isabella over by the closet, standing on her tippy-toes, muttering curses under her breath when she couldn't reach the tin box on the shelf.

Okay, so it was Marie. Whatever.

"…goddamn stupid shelf, fuck you for being so tall…damn it…" she whispered, even hopping a little in an effort to reach the box, before turning to me. "Edward, my box…" she pleaded with an almost desperate tone of voice.

I nodded. "Okay, love."

She watched as I walked up beside her and reached for the box with ease. I grabbed it and placed it in her hands. She smiled brightly up at me and gave me a kiss before hopping up onto the bed. I followed after her, intent on brushing out that long, wet hair. I sat down beside her and looked over her shoulder to see what she had stashed in the box so far. I saw that her beading stuff and the leather bracelet that I had bought for her were in there. She slipped the bracelet on her wrist, then hopped back down off the bed, heading for the stereo. I stayed put and watched her ass sway back and forth as she walked in those too short shorts that I had picked out for her to wear tonight.

She stuck a CD in the stereo system, grabbed the remote for it and strolled back over to the bed. She crawled back onto it and came over to me on all fours, smirking at me when she caught me staring at her chest in that tempting, tight shirt. She leaned over and gave me a quick, delicious kiss before sitting down in front of me so that I could brush her hair.

I had my legs open to a V again, and she positioned herself perfectly to sit in between them, leaning slightly against my chest. When I started the brush strokes, the song 'Bliss' by Mariah Carey began flowing through the speakers. Marie kept herself occupied by making a beaded bracelet and casually singing along with this very pretty…very _sexual_ song.

While I was gently brushing out her hair and listening to her soft, alluring voice sing along with the song, I had started to let my thoughts drift to my favorite Bella fantasy, giving me a very prominent, very visible problem. Jasper had caught onto my mood, as I'm sure everyone had, since they had all heard Marie singing that lovely song, in a space that was just inches away from my dick, mind you, and he had begun taming the lust flowing through my body.

Before I could think to object to his interference in this particular instance, Carlisle reminded me in his thoughts that she needed a good night's rest. I wouldn't have minded showing Marie a good time, but tonight really wasn't a good night to pull an all-nighter. Because that's about how long it would take for me to act out my fantasy of bringing my girl to heights of ecstasy, only to bring her right back down, before I work her body up all over again. It's a vicious cycle that I can hardly wait to bestow upon my Bella.

I'll admit that I absolutely fucking love the idea of shamelessly teasing her and bringing her close to the brink of climaxing, before backing off and letting her relax until her skin is ultra sensitive to my cool touch and she is begging for me to let her cum. I want her to beg…God, I fucking _love it_ when she begs for more when I'm kissing her or marking her skin. All of that begging only serves to fuel my desire for more, but in a more intimate setting. I _will_ make her beg for me. And soon.

I let my mind drift to my favorite thoughts then. I imagine that when the time comes, I'll love the feeling of her soft folds against my lips, enjoying it when her hips start to instinctually gyrate on their own, seeking out more contact. That's one of my favorite parts, because that's when I would put my hands on her slim hips, keeping her still and firmly holding her in place…silently telling her who is in control.

Peeking up from between her soft, warm thighs and watching her beautiful face blush as she gets close to her climax is a fucking amazing sight to behold in my mind. God, I love her blush…it's fucking breathtaking. I'll always make sure to back off, and kiss the delicate skin on her belly, and lightly massage her thighs as her body calms down, before I go right back to the task at hand…just so I can watch that glorious blush all over again.

She would be so worked up…her constant whispers of 'please' and breathy moans that would fall from her parted lips while I expertly work her body over, would be the most erotic sound I ever heard. When her delicious blush finally extended down past her beautiful face, coloring her soft, supple breasts as well, I would know that it's time.

The thought always makes me smile in excitement and pride at the aspect of pleasing my woman, and that's the part when I would lightly breathe a whisper of her name onto her oh, so sensitive little bud, causing a shiver to run up her spine and goosebumps to prickle her creamy skin. Then, just to torture her a little more because I simply can and want to, I would kiss her inner thighs before taking that tasty little bud back into my mouth.

At this point in my fantasy, I wouldn't be able to stop the content purr that would lightly rumble in my chest, knowing what would be happening next. The soft and subtle purr falling from my lips would send little vibrations into her core while I simultaneously doubled up my efforts with my slick fingers and talented tongue, working to finally allow her the pleasure of her release.

And when she climaxes, I would always be assured that it was most definitely worth all of my efforts. This is the best fucking part because then, the most beautiful moans and whimpers would escape her lips as she arches her back and calls out _my_ name. I would happily watch her fall apart as I eagerly drank in everything that her release gives me. Just knowing that I would control her pleasure and the intensity of it, gives me a high like no other.

I absolutely love her scent…just imagining her fucking taste…ugh, I can't wait to actually experience it for the first time. I am completely and utterly addicted to the essence of my Bella.

But…she had therapy in the morning, so that meant she had to go to sleep pretty soon.

_Damn it…fucking cock-blocking therapy schedule._

Tupac's 'Ambitions As A Ridah' came on then, the thumping beat coming out of my state-of-the-art speakers and interrupting me out of my reverie.

Marie turned to me and showed me the finished beaded bracelet. The last traces of lust were just dissipating out of my system as she asked, "Do you think she'll like it?"

I smiled at her. "Who, sweetheart?"

"Ali. It's a pretty friendship bracelet, just for her…" she said with a small smile.

I smiled warmly at her, then looked down at her hand-crafted jewelry. There were heart charms on both sides of the lettering that spelled out 'BESTIES 4 LIFE' with star charms separating the words.

I nodded and kissed her temple. "She'll love it, baby."

"Oh my God! I freakin LOVE it!" I heard Alice scream at vampire frequency, squealing and squeaking, having already seen the bracelet the second Marie decided to make it for her and obviously overly-excited at the prospect of Marie liking her enough to take the time and make her this present.

I chuckled lightly at my sister's constant hyperactive energy and Marie smiled, oblivious to Alice's excitement and satisfied with my assessment of the bracelet, then placed it reverently back in her tin box. I ran the brush through her hair six more times while she closed up her box, then I set the brush down on the nightstand, knowing that her hair was dry now. I always brushed it out until it was dry, because I didn't want her laying down with wet hair, risking a chance at getting sick.

"I'm going to go downstairs and make your protein shake, " I informed her, then got up from my spot behind her on the bed.

She nodded and handed me her box. "Can you put this back on that stupid shelf for me? It's too fucking high…" she told me before she added thoughtfully, "maybe I should just find another spot for my fuckawesome cuppycake box. I need it to be accessible to me at _all times_…" she trailed off as her eyes started darting all over the room, no doubt trying to locate a different place for her box's safekeeping.

I nodded and walked over towards the closet. "Well, if you pick out another place for your box, just let me know and I'll get it back down for you," I told her while placing the box back up on the too-high shelf.

She got off the bed then, and walked over to the dvd shelf, giving me the opportunity to have her pick one out for the night.

"Pick out a movie for bed, sweetheart…I'll be right back with your shake," I told her, as I walked towards the bedroom door.

She nodded, her gaze intent on the dvds in front of her, as I turned the corner, walking out of the room, headed downstairs to the kitchen.

After putting the necessary ingredients into the blender, I hit the button on the weird looking machine, and let it just…um, _blend_, like I had done last night. As soon as it was done, I poured it into a cup and stuck a plastic straw in it, knowing that while Isabella likes to suck liquid through a straw, Marie likes to chew on her straw. So, the straw was a good idea, no matter who I happened to come back to upstairs.

I headed back to the steps then, nodding at my family on the way, and made my way back up to the bedroom. Marie was on the bed, remote in her hand, and she was hitting the PLAY button to start the movie she had picked, which happened to be Fight Club.

"Here you go, beautiful," I said when I reached the bed, and handed her the glass full of her chocolate drink.

She smiled and took a sip. "Mmmmm, Edward. So fuckin yummy…" she said, taking another sip.

I watched her throat constrict as she swallowed and was mesmerized by the sight of it momentarily.

_…mmm, so delicious. So fucking easy to just **bite** -_

I shook my head and swallowed back the venom that had instantly pooled in my mouth. When I got control of my instincts, I took my position seated behind her again. I would need to hunt soon. I didn't like that...didn't like it at all. I hadn't been away from Bella since my girls started coming around. I didn't want to leave them for any length of time…no matter how short it was.

She laid back onto my chest and rested her head on my shoulder, keeping that straw in her mouth...sometimes sucking, sometimes chewing.

I stuck my nose in her hair and breathed in, enjoying her scent a little too much, before asking, "Fight Club?"

She giggled and nodded. "I love this fuckawesome movie."

I liked the movie too, but I was intrigued as to why she liked it so much. I gave her a kiss behind her ear before speaking softly into it. "How come, baby? What do you like about it?"

She cleared her throat and removed the straw from her mouth. "I can soooo totally relate to it. I mean, come on babe…don't you see the magical connection that me and my Bell have with this motherfucking brilliant film? The dude has a goddamn split personality. And it happens to be a fuckawesome one…just like me," she said brightly. "I'm Brad Pitt…all adventurous and violent and shit, while my Bell is Edward Norton…calm and complacent and totally fucking clueless," she trailed off with a giggle.

I hummed in agreement, the connection was definitely uncanny.

Marie gasped and turned to face me quickly with a devilish grin on her face. She was practically vibrating with excitement all of a sudden, so I just had to ask.

"…What?" I hedged, slightly amused by the expression on her face.

"Do you think _I_ could start my very own fight club?" she asked, squeaking out the word 'club' as excited amusement twinkled in her chocolate, expressive eyes.

I hated to crush her dreams that had a life all of 20 seconds long, but I just had to. "No, baby…no fight club," I said softly, trying to lighten the blow of disappointment for her ridiculous idea.

Her face fell so fast, it almost gave me whiplash.

"But…why?"

She sounded so devastated.

_Aw…my feisty little kitten. No fight club for you. Sorry._

"Sweetheart, that stuff isn't realistic -" I started, but she cut me off.

"Ya-huh Edward, it's right fucking there," she said, exasperated while pointing at the tv screen.

She obviously didn't know the difference between Hollywood and the real world.

I shook my head. "Love, that kind of stuff isn't real…"

I knew that it really was, but I wasn't about to tell the most violent girl in Forks that little tidbit of information.

"But…but, that's just fucking tragic..." she said, crestfallen, and believing my words now.

"I know," I agreed.

She nodded and turned her focus back to the movie and her protein shake.

While she watched the movie, I went over in my head the possibility of enrolling her in some kind of boxing lessons…or self-defense class. I knew she already had the skills and knowledge of self-defense, but I also knew that she would need a physical outlet for her aggression and it was now my responsibility to somehow safely feed her addiction to violence. It was a tricky subject, but I knew I would come up with something eventually.

The boxing, kick-boxing and wrestling lessons were sounding better and better by the minute. It also helped that I had seen up close and personal her skills, so I wasn't really all that worried about her getting hurt. Plus, I would always be nearby in case she got into a situation that she couldn't handle.

Once therapy got underway, and there was some kind of control over when and how Marie and Isabella would come out, I could look more into depth on the matter. As of right now, I can't risk Marie being at a wrestling match, and all of a sudden my little Isabella comes out. I wasn't sure if she had any knowledge on fighting, but I'm going to give it a guess, and say…no.

When she was through with her shake, she traded me the cup for her sleeping pill. She popped it in her mouth with ease and sipped some water to help it go down, then settled back against my chest for the rest of the movie. It was just about over by now, so I turned off the lamp on the nightstand and decided to go ahead and lay us down, noticing that it was almost 11pm. I smiled, realizing that she would be going to sleep earlier than she had last night when Isabella was around for bedtime.

"No…" she said, whining slightly when I went to lay us down.

She scooted over to my side, and positioned her body so that it was mostly laying down, but she was still reclined a bit against the headboard with some pillows, so that she could watch the movie comfortably.

When she turned her head to look at me longingly, biting that bottom lip, I mirrored her position with my own. She immediately cuddled close into my side and when I wrapped my arm around her, holding her close to me, I both heard and felt her sigh of contentment.

About ten minutes later, with her eyes still on the screen, she breathed out, "I fucking love you, Edward…"

"I love you too, sweetheart," I told her and placed a kiss to her temple.

"Goin to see the doc tomorrow?" she mumbled sleepily.

I nodded, knowing by her slightly slurred speech that she was succumbing to the power of the pill. "Yes, Marie…you're going to see the doctor tomorrow."

"Don't wanna, though…" she mumbled.

"I know," I said quietly, and turned the volume down on the screen.

She pouted and kicked at the covers a bit, so I turned the volume back up a little, and she seemed to calm down a bit.

"Don't turn off the movie, Edwaaaaaaard…" she slurred and whined.

She seemed agitated all of a sudden. I immediately suspected the side effects of that sleeping pill, but…

_Isabella didn't act like this last night._

No, Isabella didn't. She had fallen right to sleep, so…what's going on? It doesn't make sense that they would have different reactions to it, because it is the same body.

Bella's body.

_So…_

Okay, maybe this is just the reaction to that pill and Isabella didn't display any signs of irritation and restlessness last night because she had just simply fallen right to sleep.

Marie, on the other hand, seems to be fighting it for some reason.

"Shhh…" I shushed her, then kissed her forehead.

I laid us down the rest of the way then, and she laid her head in it's spot at the crook of my shoulder.

"Ed-ward," she pouted, but her voice hitched, so it sounded almost like she was going to cry.

_What's wrong?_

"What is it, baby?" I whispered, trying to calm her and set the silent atmosphere for her to go to sleep.

I started lightly trailing my fingers along her back, like I usually do, in hopes that it would placate her.

"Edward, we don't want no fucking doctor," she mumbled indignantly.

"Shhh, go to sleep…" I told her quietly, not willing to have this discussion for the hundredth fucking time today.

"Ed-waaaard…" she whined and hitched her leg over mine, pressing her delicious heat right up against my hip.

_Oh, God…so fucking warm._

She wasn't aroused though, my senses hadn't picked up on that at all.

She gasped, then breathed out a heavy sigh. "Edward, I'm t-t-tiiiiired…don't fucking _like_ it."

"Just go to sleep, baby…" I told her, confused as to what the problem was.

I mean, the solution was fairly easy.

She whined again and rolled off of me. "Nooooo…no, I don't…can't…don't fucking like to _sleep_, goddamn it!" she said, her voice rising as she spoke.

_Umm. Okay._

"Marie, what-" I started, but she interrupted me.

"Fucking _SHHHHH_, yourself, Edward!" she yelled, clearly frustrated, as she got off the bed and started for the bathroom, muttering '…goddamn sleeping pill, should'a fucking known…'.

Her steps faltered a bit in her sleepy state, so I got up to follow her, just to make sure she didn't trip and fall, or have some other Bella-like accident.

I honestly didn't get why she said that she didn't like to sleep. I had put her to sleep all of three times now. Once, when she had woken up in the middle of the night back in Bella's old bedroom, and twice after she was through throwing her ridiculous fits, as I was pacing the floor of our bedroom with her in my arms.

When I noticed that she wasn't actually using the bathroom to relieve herself, I risked a peek in there. I saw that she had flipped up the toilet lid and her hand was going for her mouth. No, not her hand…her finger. One, single pointer finger.

_Oh, for the love of God..._

I darted in and grabbed her up into my arms. "No," I said firmly.

Had she been doing this for a while?

Making herself vomit?

Is that the reason why she is so underweight?

Was Marie bulimic?

_Not on my goddamn watch._

She whined all the way back to our bed. I gently sat her down on the edge of it, her legs dangling off the side, before taking a few steps back, and putting that much needed distance in between us right now. I was suddenly furious and her making that god awful whining noise wasn't helping matters at all.

"So help me God, Marie - if you don't stop that incessant fucking whining-" I said curtly before she switched it up and started humming instead.

I closed my eyes, and stopped myself from jumping to conclusions, trying my hardest to reign in my anger at the idea of Marie depriving my Bella's body of food.

A few seconds later, when I was calm again, I opened my eyes and realized then, that my Bella's current thin form before me wouldn't be helping Marie's case in the matter.

"Marie?" I called, my voice was hard and clipped.

"Hmmm…" she hummed sleepily, barely keeping her eyes open. "What?" she muttered quietly.

I fought to find the words, trying to make sense of what I had just seen. "What…why…what the fuck were you going to do in the bathroom a second ago?" I asked, putting my hands behind my back and gripping them together to prevent myself from taking this to a physical level.

_No. Spanking. Don't. Fucking. Spank. Her._ I kept repeating to myself.

"Gotta get the goddamn pill outta my body, Edward…" she mumbled, but then suddenly let out a short scream through gritted teeth as her eyes finally fell closed. She shot them back open with determination, then looked up at me. "Sleepin's just not my fuckin thing, ya know…I can't do it...this is my Bell's area of motherfucking expertise, not mine…goddamn it," she mumbled in a worn out, breathy voice as her eyelids started to become too heavy for her again.

"Do you do that a lot?" I insisted, ignoring her barely coherent state right now. "Try to 'get stuff out of your body'? Hmm?"

She moaned and put her face in her hands, whimpering, "Make it stop…"

"Answer me," I demanded.

"No…" she muttered.

"What?" I shot back curtly.

"No…" she said a bit more clearly.

"After you eat, do you go to the toilet and stick your finger down your fucking throat?" I asked in a hard voice, glaring down at her frustrated sleepy form.

She lifted her head from her hands then, and squinted open one of her eyes with some great effort. "Why the fuck would I do that? Especially if the food was mmm fucking yummy, I mean _come the fuck on_, Edward!" she said, moaning and grabbing her head again. "…where do you come up with this shit?" she muttered as an afterthought, actually managing to sound exasperated and indignant with her mumbled answer.

I stood there, staring silently down at her and found that I believed her answer, so I relaxed my demeanor, but not before she yelled out, "God_damn_ it, Edward!"

"What?" I asked, and quickly moved to sit by her side.

"Make…make…the fee…feeling stop," she slurred with her eyes closed.

I suddenly felt very sorry for her. I remembered the first time, when she had woken up in the middle of the night in my lap back in Bella's old bedroom, she seemed so confused with her current state of exhaustion, and didn't quite know why she was being so sluggish in her movements. It was very apparent to me, even then, that she didn't like this thing called 'sleep'.

_Wow, I can't believe that had been just a few days ago…_

I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and tucked her body into my side. I kissed her head and whispered lightly, "Just give in, sweetheart…just…go to sleep."

"Nooo…" she moaned, and her breath hitched. "So hard to fight…" she mumbled, her face buried into my chest now.

I leaned back, laying us both down as she continued her battle with sleep for three more minutes. I kept up my lightly trailing fingertips and watched as she sighed and moaned and squirmed, until I heard her speak again.

"Is…a…bella," she breathed out the name in three syllables and rolled onto her other side, only to roll right back over to me. "Isabella, you do it…" she mumbled, her eyes closed.

Her breath hitched again and she whimpered. I thought that she might cry, like going to sleep was fucking torture for her, or something. I felt helpless, and I was hating every minute of it. I also started to come to the conclusion that my Bella's recent sleep deprivation could most likely be held accountable by Marie. Watching this display made me realize that she obviously had a problem with sleep, making her absolutely loath it.

"Isabella, goddamn it…just please…" she sighed out.

A split second later, she sat up and turned her head to gaze down at me. Her eyes had a pained expression in them as she let out another whimper and stuck her thumb in her mouth.

_Well, hello baby girl…_

She didn't waste any time in straddling my hips and nuzzling her face in my neck. I enveloped her in my arms and started to rock her a bit from side to side, shushing her and humming a bit.

She whimpered and sighed, whispering an occasional "Mine", before finally giving into sleep four minutes later.

I breathed out a sigh of relief, knowing that my girl's epic battle with sleep had finally come to an end.


	24. A Divine Purpose

A/N:

Ok, caution people...this chapter is my longest one yet, and there's a reason for that. It contains child abuse described very graphically, and please keep in mind while you're reading it that it only scratches the surface of things to come. The material discussed in this chapter will seem like a ride at fucking disney world, once we actually get going later on. If you want to skip over the cringe-worthiness of it all, that's fine. You won't know what's going on, but that's fine. Bella's flashbacks of abuse will be written in italics.

* * *

EPOV

"Stop, it…"

"Huh-uh, you stop it."

"Now, baby. Come on…stop."

"You stop it," she insisted.

"No, _you_ stop it," I countered.

She giggled. "You!" she exclaimed, then continued to jump towards the opposite direction of me, on the trampoline.

"Isabella, it's time to come inside," I reminded her gently.

"You go inside," she countered breathlessly and bounced again.

"Isabella-"

"Edward," she interrupted before I could continue.

"What?" I asked.

"What?" she mocked.

_Oh, come the fuck on._

Isabella was being…difficult.

The morning had gone smoothly so far. She had woken up at just after 8:00, and had a bowl of cereal for breakfast. Fruity Pebbles, to be exact. Then she wanted to dress and feed her baby doll while she caught up on some morning cartoons on this weird tv channel called 'Nickelodean'...and then she wanted to color. After that, she wanted to get dressed and play outside. I said that it was OK for a little bit, but that she had therapy in about half an hour. She smiled and nodded, then ran right out the back doors, headed straight for this death trap.

It was now 9:58...two minutes until she needed to park her little butt on the couch in Carlisle's study for her first therapy session.

"Isabella, it's time to come back inside," I repeated.

"Why?" she asked before she gave a little flip and landed flat on her back, only to get back up and start jumping again.

"You know why, angel…" I said softly.

I was trying to be gentle with my prodding for as long as possible. I knew that this would be hard for her, but her mocking me and not listening was making my 'gentle' approach harder and harder by the minute.

"No, Edward…s'time to play, not go inside," she insisted with a smile and a little giggle, before she started hopping around the edges of the trampoline, furthest away from me.

And it was making me fucking nervous.

I knew what she was doing, besides the obvious…avoidance. She was turning on her charm with her adorable smiles and giggles in hopes of getting her way.

_Sorry, kiddo._

I gave her my 'stern face', which wasn't that hard, given where she was jumping at the moment, and said, "Isabella, _now_. And if you don't stop jumping on the edge of this thing, you won't be playing on it for the rest of the week. Get. Off."

She stopped jumping immediately and sat down. Once all the bouncing vibrations came to an end, she looked at me with a truly pitiful expression.

"Edward, nooo…" she whined in her small child-like voice.

I softened my gaze now that she had stopped jumping. "Yes, baby. Come here," I said, reaching out my arms for her.

I could have easily walked over to where she was and gotten her, or snatched her off this thing mid-jump five minutes ago, but I wanted her to come to me. On her own.

After a minute of thinking, she finally made her way over to me. She crawled…very deliberately at a very slow pace, but I didn't rush her. I was just glad she was coming to me on her own when she knew what would happen next.

Therapy.

When she was within my reach, I pulled her off of the trampoline and set her back down on the ground with a kiss to her forehead. I was going to take her hand in mine so that we could go back inside, but she turned right back around in a rush, and started to climb back on the damn thing.

"Isabella, no," I scolded her, then wrapped my arm around her waist, pulling her to me and away from the trampoline.

Once we were a few feet away, I wrapped my hand around her small one in a firm grip, and we started our walk back to the house.

"No, Edwaaard," she whined, and started to dig her feet into the ground, to prevent us from walking any further.

When she realized that wasn't working, she let her body go limp in a very toddler-like fashion. I shook my head, tired of her antics, and just picked her up from where she was seated on the ground. When I had her in my arms, she put her hands on my shoulders to boost herself up a bit, then reached an arm out in the direction we had just come from.

"My jump-a-lene," she pouted pitifully in my ear. "Edward, I still wanna play…" she said in a sad voice, and sniffled.

"You can later, sweetheart," I assured her as we were walking through the back door to the house.

Once we were back in the house, she got quiet and her loose grip around my neck had tightened into a death grip. When we got to the second floor and were down the hall from Carlisle's study, I decided to say our goodbyes here, and reassure her that I would be nearby.

"Are you going to be a good girl for me?" I asked softly in her ear as I tightened my own hold on her.

I knew she would be upset and that I couldn't be in there with her. And to be perfectly honest, it was fucking stressing me out. I would know everything that happened, and everything that was discussed, but I wouldn't be in the room, which is where she needed me to be. We were at an impasse.

She nodded but didn't speak.

"You're such a big girl, and you're going to be just fine," I encouraged in my gentle tone.

She sniffled.

We were outside of the closed door now, so I set her back down on her feet. She didn't loosen her fisted hold that she had on my shirt as she looked up at me with watery chocolate eyes. The sight of them broke my heart and spiked my anxiety level, but I remained calm for her. I couldn't let her know how much this was upsetting me too.

"I'll be right here when you get done, angel. Right here waiting," I told her with a warm smile.

She nodded and when I reached my hand out for the door knob, she suddenly gasped.

I looked back down at her as she said in a rushed voice, "I gotta go potty."

She was looking up to me for permission, and it was probably a good idea if she got that out of the way before her session, so I nodded and she took off down the hall, back to the staircase and made her way back up to our bathroom. She didn't know where any of the other ones were yet.

Everyone was out of the house. They had all gone hunting after Isabella had eaten her breakfast this morning. They wanted to give my Bella some privacy with her therapy, so it was just me, my dad and my girl that were here. I knew Carlisle was waiting for her in his study while reading a book, and he had heard our entire exchange, so he would know that she is willing but reluctant about this session, and that it could start just as soon as she was through using the restroom.

_Edward, check on her_ Carlisle thought to me.

I looked down at my watch. It had been six minutes with no sign of my little angel…

_Hmmm…_

I was upstairs and in our bedroom in a flash, only to see that the bathroom door was open, so I knew that she wasn't in there using it. I could smell her scent and hear her heartbeat though, so I knew that she was in this room. After pulling in a breath of her scent, my eyes zeroed in on the king size bed. She was under it.

I shook my head. "Isabella?" I called her name out softly.

I heard her breath catch and her heartbeat picked up a little bit.

"Isabella, where are you?" I asked while staring at the bed.

I heard her soft snickering and whispered giggles, so I walked around the room a little, knowing that her eyes would be following the movement of my feet. She was still trying to avoid therapy and wanted to play with me…I hated that I had to keep telling her 'no' to her fun-time this morning.

"Are you hiding?" I guessed out loud.

"You can't find me," she taunted softly and then giggled a little, trying to keep her voice down to conceal her hiding spot.

She was really too adorable for words.

"Isabella, if I can find you, will you come out?" I asked, needing to know that she wouldn't fight me anymore this morning.

She giggled. "But you can't find me. I'm a good hider," she said lightly.

I chuckled. "We'll see about that, angel. I'm a pretty good seeker," I informed her.

She had no idea how good a 'seeker' I could be. I was a fast and cunning predator with excellent hunting skills.

I walked by the bathroom, the closet, and checked behind a few things just to humor her. I could tell she was amused everytime I chose the wrong spot. I could hear her soft snickers from under the bed the whole time. After a minute though, it was time for the games to be over and therapy to begin. She was already ten minutes late.

So I got down on all fours, on the side of the bed that I knew she was on, and popped my head under the bed.

"Boo."

"Ahhh!" she mock-yelled with a big smile on her face.

I reached out and tickled her sides and the crook of her neck, causing peals of laughter and giggles to fall from her lips. When she was breathless from her laughing, I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her to me, and out from underneath the bed.

"Silly girl," I said, looking down at her with a smile.

She giggled and said, "I'm a good hider, huh?"

I nodded. "Yes, you are."

She smiled and sat up. "Edward can we watch my Cars movie again?" she asked hopefully while pointing to the screen. "Ta-Mater is funny," she added as an afterthought, then kissed my cheek, being extra sweet.

I kept a small smile on my face and looked into her eyes. "Maybe after therapy, angel…"

She shook her head quickly. "But can we do it now?"

I sighed and squinted my eyes at her a bit, unsure of how she would react if I just picked her up and took her down to Carlisle's study. Right. Now.

"Later, baby," I repeated softly.

"Wanna play dollies with me?" she asked brightly, completely changing the direction of her avoidance tactic.

I sighed. "Isabella, it's not time to play…or bounce, or watch a movie, or color, or draw, or even cuddle. It's time for _therapy_," I reminded her.

She shook her head and looked crestfallen. "But don't you _wanna_ play with me…?" she asked sadly.

_Manipulative little girl._

I knew she was trying to play on my feelings for her, and it seemed that guilt was a desperate last resort for her, and a low blow for me.

"Stop it," I told her in a firm voice, letting her know that I knew what she was doing and that it wouldn't work.

She smiled then.

"You stop it," she said lightly, going back to the mocking game she had played with me this morning on the trampoline.

"Isabella, that is enough."

"That is enough," she snickered and giggled, clearly wanting to keep playing and completely blow off this therapy business.

I ignored her game and stood up. I looked down at her and gestured to the bedroom door. "Let's go."

She shook her head. "Uh-uh," she muttered, then layed down on her stomach then started to crawl back underneath the bed.

I grabbed ahold of her ankles that were peeking out at me before they went under the bed as well. "No, Isabella. That's enough, it's time for therapy."

"No, no, nooo," she whined and tried to wiggle her ankles free from my grasp.

"Oh yes, yes, yes," I insisted, then gently tugged on her ankles, pulling her back out from underneath the bed.

Her body slid along the hardwood floor with ease and soon she was back under me.

"Get up, baby girl."

She didn't flip her body around to look at me, just whined out, "No…" and started to go right back for her hiding spot…under the bed.

I bent down and swatted her ass lightly before she could make anymore progress towards her target. "Now, Isabella."

She flipped her body around then, and sat up. When she looked up and me, she started to cry, even though I _know_ that little baby swat I gave her didn't hurt, and said, "Don't wanna get a doctor, Edward."

"Let's go," I insisted in a hard voice.

"_You_ go," she insisted right back through her tears and sniffles.

I suddenly felt like an ass for taking it to this level, but she was wasting time and I was getting tired of her avoidance. I was upset too, damn it. I wanted this session to just fucking be over already, so that we could get on with our day. After the session, I could play with Isabella. I could watch a movie with her. I could play with her hair and cuddle her. But right now…this just sucked right now. We were in limbo, and would continue to be going back and forth between 'go to therapy, Isabella' and 'I don't wanna, Edward' until we were both blue in the face.

So I broke out the magic question.

"Do you want to be in trouble, Isabella?"

She gasped and shook her head. I looked into her watery gaze as she started to nervously suck on those pretty pink lips.

"Then get up off the floor, and walk out that door so that you can go see Carlisle," I suggested lowly.

"Edward, come _with_ me," she pleaded and wiped some tears from her eyes.

"I'll walk you to the door and I'll be there waiting for you when you're done, baby," I reassured her softly.

BPOV

"…and I'll be here the whole time, sweetheart. I won't leave the house, I promise," Edward told me with conviction.

_Umm. Okay._

"Well, that's great honey," I told him with a smile. Then I gave him a questioning gaze. "But…why can't you leave the house?" I asked, unsure of what was going on.

_And why am I on the floor?_

_My cheeks are wet. God, am I crying?_

**Nooooo doctors!** Isabella shouted in my head

**That's fuckin right, damn skippy, munchkin - you tell 'em like it is!** Marie agreed, cheering her on, apparently.

_Ugh, you two are ridiculous…_

"Bella? Baby, come here," Edward's voice rushed out, and I was suddenly off the ground and in his arms for a big hug…a huge hug…that he didn't seem to want to end.

_Aw, my man missed me._

I got comfortable in my spot against Edward's body, and he put his arm under me, obviously wanting to hold me like a child so that I would stay put in his grasp. Then the words came pouring out of his mouth before I could even ask. He told me everything. Everything that had happened since yesterday afternoon in the backyard, right up until the last minute when Isabella was trying to hide under the bed to avoid a simple therapy session.

I kissed him. No, I attacked him was more like it. I was so in love with this man. He put up with all of my baggage with no protest, and he loved me unconditionally. I kissed him until _he_ was breathless this time, instead of me. I could feel the tense waves coming off of him, as he spoke of his caution about my therapy and his worries on whether he was handling the girls well, or not. They had both gotten themselves into some trouble last night and Isabella needed help with another bath…he was just so confused on these matters.

I ran my hands through his hair slowly and softly murmured against his ear, telling him how wonderful he was being about all of this and that he is doing an excellent job in handling my alternates. I reassured him with soft caresses and kisses, knowing how much he missed me, and understanding his point of view on things.

I wish I could say that I missed him too, but I barely noticed that I was gone. I mean, just a few minutes ago, it was yesterday afternoon and Edward had me in his arms, much like I was right now, and we were talking with Carlisle about my therapy schedule. A schedule that was supposed to start nearly an hour ago, apparently.

With one last kiss, he said, "Carlisle is waiting, love."

I nodded, but made no move to get out of his arms. And he made no move to loosen his grip on me.

I laughed gently. "Are you comin' too?" I asked, then looked down pointedly at our joined bodies.

"Oh," he chuckled and gently set me back down on my feet.

**Bell, what the fuck are you doing?** Marie asked me.

"I love you, Bella," he breathed out.

"I love you too. So much," I assured him.

_I'm going to see Carlisle, what do you think?_

**No!** both girls yelled back at me.

_Yes! I know it sucks, but we are going to fucking cooperate, damn it. We are going to therapy_ I told them both, leaving no room for argument.

My head was silent for a few seconds before Marie spoke up.

**Who died and made you queen of the world?**

**I would love that job!** Isabella exclaimed brightly.

I ignored them and started to make my way out of the room. Edward grabbed my hand before I reached the door, and I smiled up at him as we made our way out of our bedroom together. He walked me down the steps to the second floor and stayed by my side until we reached the door to Carlisle's study.

We lingered there for a minute, while Edward gazed into my eyes and ran his fingers lightly along my arm, which felt amazing and I didn't want to say anything to make him stop.

"You should go…" he whispered.

I nodded and bit my lip. I was actually a little nervous about therapy, but I was going to tough it out anyway. The Cullens had opened up their home to me and accepted Marie and Isabella. The very least I could do was cooperate and amuse Carlisle, so that he could make me 'better'.

I scoffed at that thought.

_Yeah, he could try all he wants, but it's not gonna do a a damn bit of good._

**And we're not going anywhere** Marie reminded me.

_I know._

**We're bestest friends forever, huh…** Isabella said.

_Bestest_ I reassured her.

Edward kissed my lips softly and reached for the doorknob, but Carlisle opened the door before Edward could turn the knob. He had obviously been waiting for a while.

He smiled warmly at me. "Hello, Bella dear."

"Hi Carlisle," I responded with my own smile.

"Won't you come in?" he asked, then moved to the side so that I could walk past him.

Once I was in the room, I looked back and saw Edward standing in the doorway giving me a longing look.

"I'll be here when you're done," he reminded me softly.

I nodded and smiled at him to let him know that I really was okay.

"She'll do just fine," Carlisle assured him while they both stared at me.

I turned away then, uncomfortable with their intent stares. That was going to have to stop. I knew what they were doing…observing me and watching closely for any signs of a personality switch. I didn't like it.

**I'll make them stop** Marie told me.

_No, I'll handle it. Don't worry about it._

I didn't want Marie causing any trouble over a few weird looks. That was just ridiculous.

"Bella, have a seat," Carlisle suggested and pointed to the chair opposite of his huge wooden desk that was college-dean worthy. At least, that's what I thought of when I looked at the thing.

I sat down in a really comfy chair and he sat in his high-backed leather chair behind his desk so that we were facing eachother. We went through the pleasantries while he took out a thick leather bound journal. It was blank, so I assumed that he had bought it brand new…just for me and my therapy and his 'cures' for me.

_Good luck, doc._

**I wanna draw in the big book** Isabella said.

**I'll swipe it for you later, kid** Marie told her.

**Kay…** Isabella snickered.

"Now, before we get started on anything else, I have a question about last night, Bella."

"I wasn't around last night," I informed him. I thought he knew this already?

"I know, it's about Marie's behavior."

"Okay," I nodded.

_What did you do?_

**Not a motherfuckin thing, I don't know what doctor dad is talkin about, Bell. Honest** she insisted.

_Okay…_

"She seems to have an issue with sleep, Bella. And while that identifies the root and cause of your recent sleep deprivation, it still concerns us. Your body needs rest on a continuous cycle, and if it does not get the required amount of sleep on a regular basis, it can lead to other health problems. A weak immune system, being one of them," he informed me.

I nodded, already aware of this problem and understanding his concerns. "I know. I've had the problem with sleep deprivation since back in November, around Thanksgiving. I can tell you that it is, in fact, because of Marie, as it was because of Isabella when I was a child," I told him and leaned back in the chair, folding my legs up by me as well, getting comfortable for this whole therapy fiasco.

"She doesn't understand certain things about our body," I continued. "The things that freak her out, she avoids at all costs. Those things being sleep, illness, and my menstrual cycle," I ticked off on three fingers.

"She doesn't understand exhaustion and how it can make her focus and movements sluggish. She doesn't like the feeling of sleep fogging up her brain, making her body shut down. She absolutely loathes the aches and pains that go along with being sick…with either the flu or a simple cold, which I have had quite a few times since she's showed up. And she doesn't understand my monthly period. So, naturally…she will avoid having to deal with it," I informed him.

"There was a time a few months back, when I had a tampon inside of my body for nineteen hours because she wanted to avoid my period and deny what was happening. When she started feeling sharp pains in her abdomen, she skipped out, bringing me back into awareness, and was immediately freaking out inside of my head…asking me what the fuck was going on, and why our body was feeling this way. I could tell almost instantly what she was talking about and removed the tampon immediately. I felt horrible and I wanted to know why. It was when I checked the time, that I learned it had been inside of me for a lot longer than the instructions permitted. I had to go to the hospital that night and get put on antibiotics to make sure that I didn't get a bacterial infection because of Marie's denial."

Carlisle nodded for me to continue.

"Similar things happened with Isabella, her main thing being sleep, as well. She didn't mind being sick as much as Marie does though. Isabella is used to aches and pains…" I trailed off suggestively. "While Marie is not," I finished curtly.

"That is very interesting," he murmured, looking up at me from his writing.

I wanted to roll my eyes, but refrained from doing so. "The only thing I can suggest, is that you keep up the prescription for my sleeping pill. That way it forces my body to shut down and rest, whether Marie likes it or not."

He nodded at my suggestion, then chuckled lightly. "Yes, she wasn't having any of it last night. She was fighting tooth and nail to stay awake, before she finally started pleading with Isabella to come out and deal with it for her. Surprisingly, Isabella complied," he informed me with a raised eyebrow.

I nodded and smiled. "Yes, Isabella would. She's been around a lot longer than Marie, and has her own ingrained need to protect and take care of me. Her need extends to Marie as well, so yeah…she would help her out with that," I informed him.

He nodded and continued to write for a few seconds. When he looked back into my eyes, I saw that his were filled with concern and apprehension. I tensed immediately, wondering what direction he was going to choose to take this session today. It had been calm and relaxed until now.

"Would you like to tell me how this all started, Bella? I mean, I know the basics, and what you told me about Jim, but…I would really like to know about the first time you saw, or heard Isabella. When had your mind created her? What particular event caused her breakthrough? Do you remember?" he asked, dazzling and persuading an answer out of me with his demeanor and tone alone.

_Stupid, dazzling vampire._

I nodded. "Yeah…I do," I whispered, all of a sudden reluctant. My mood had shifted with the shift in our topic.

"Would you like to talk about that today, Bella? I figured we might as well start from the beginning…" he suggested with a reassuring smile.

I bit my lip and nodded. "Um, yeah…sure," I said in an unsure voice, then cleared my throat to dislodge the lump that had started to form there.

He raised his eyebrows, silently asking me to continue.

**Bella, thats just between us…you don't gotta tell him anything** Isabella told me.

I ignored her, and told him my story. It was a very small piece of my entire story, but I could offer him this little piece of information.

I mean, I was going to cooperate, right?

**If you fuckin say so…** Marie's voice trailed off as she began to hum lightly in almost a whisper so that she wouldn't have to pay attention to this next part.

"I remember a short time, before Isabella arrived, when there was a lot of abuse. So it wasn't just one particular incident...more like a build-up, Carlisle, you must understand that," I stressed.

The atmosphere in the room was suddenly serious. There were no more smiles, no more polite talking. We were getting down to business now, and we both knew it.

He kept his gaze on me and nodded, acknowledging what I told him and letting me know that he was all ears.

I sighed, crossed my arms protectively over my chest, and kept eye contact as I began telling him random memories.

"Once, he put me in the oven and shut the door. I remember him holding my hand over a boiling tea kettle because I had touched something of his. Umm…I believe my first, and main, memory of abuse would be the closet, though. Renee was working late, or out…as usual, and I was with Jim. I lived with him there, at his creeptacular house for a while. He moved me and my mom in shortly after their god awful relationship began. Anyway…I think I spilled milk all over the table, and in a fit of rage, Jim dragged me to the closet that was inside the closet under the front stairs. It was a small compartment, reached by a door behind the coats. It had seemed like an odd, and mysterious place to Bobby and me -"

He interrupted me with a raise of his hand. "Who is Bobby?"

"Oh. That's Jim's son. He was a year older than me…pretty cool kid," I revealed nonchalantly with a shrug.

His pen went back to work on that leather book, and he nodded. "Sorry for the interruption, please continue…"

"Sure. Anyway, me and Bobby couldn't figure out why anyone would build a closet inside of a closet," I said with a shake of my head and a nervous chuckle.

I hesitated, but eventually continued on. "Um…I vividly remember putting up a big fight when Jim grabbed me…

_"No, daddy, no! I'll be good!" My arms and legs were flailing, trying to get away and hold on at the same time. "I'm sorry I spilled the milk," I cried. He peeled me off of him and shoved me into the blackness of the closet. I screamed and screamed, throwing my whole body against the door. My heart beat wildly in my chest. The blackness was an all encompassing thing. That was all there was. I felt like I couldn't breathe. The certainty of being lost and forgotten engulfed me. After the screaming, came my exhaustion and sniffling tears. I have no way of knowing if I was there for minutes or hours. At five years old, it seemed like forever. I was terrified of the spiders that I thought lived in the closet. I started sucking my thumb in the bleakness of abandonment when Jim finally opened the door. I looked at him in defiance. "Just you wait until mommy gets home, I'munna tell her what you did to me!" Jim grabbed my arm, almost ripping it from it's socket and dragged me up the stairs to my new bedroom. He threw me on the bed before leaving the room…_

I sniffled then, and realized I had started to tear up. I clenched my eyes shut to rid them of the few tears that had gathered there, and quickly wiped them away. I looked back up to Carlisle too see his intent stare on me, so I cleared my throat and muttered an apology for stopping.

He nodded. "You're fine dear. You're doing great…" he encouraged.

I nodded and took a deep, cleansing breath before continuing.

_In a few minutes, he came back with some big blue scarves. While I struggled and screamed, he tied my arms and legs to the posts of my bed. I remember his icy blue eyes that were looking at me, but not actually seeing me. In a stern voice Jim said to me, "You are a wicked little girl. If you ever tell anyone what I do to you, I will give you away to people who will sell you for money and who will tie you down and hurt you. They will fuck you, Isabella, and you will never see Mommy or Bobby ever again. You must never tell anyone that I hurt you." He took something and stuck it into what I know now as my asshole...or anus, whatever. It was white fire. I writhed against the scarves that were binding me and screamed and screamed. "You must not tell, because this is how those men will hurt you. They will take their big cocks and stick them inside of you. Just. Like. This." he told me while gliding the thing in and out of me three times. When he finally stopped, he prodded, "You're not going to say a fucking word. Are you?" I shook my head frantically as he stood there, staring at me with a glint in his cold eyes while I cried, bound to the bed. When I quieted down, he untied me and told me to stay in my room. That I was on a time-out. So I stayed, and when mommy and Bobby came home I did not say a word about the closet or my experience on the bed. I just sucked my thumb. I remember the blood on my panties and the searing pain when I used the bathroom. I held it until I thought I would burst and then cried at the stinging pain as I finally relieved myself._

I cleared my throat and tore my gaze away from Carlisle's penetrating gold one. Instead, I focused on a squiggle line that was in the wood of his college-dean desk. I focused on it until it turned into two squiggle lines, then blinked, so that when I looked again, it was just the one line.

I continued in a subdued voice. "Umm…I'm sure that it became easier for Jim to do what he did to me as time went on. He is certifiably insane and delusional, so everything that he did to me had a purpose…a fucking divine purpose, is what he called it. Anyway, severe punishments were dealt out for minor childish mistakes. I don't even remember what I did wrong. But…the punishments stand out clearly in my mind…"

_I think I broke something of his when I was dragged down to the basement, stripped naked, and tied to a cold, steel table with the blue scarves, with my legs spread-eagled so far apart that I thought my hips were ripping. "You're an evil little kike. We'll just have to sew you shut so you won't spread your wickedness." While I lay screaming, Jim took a needle and threaded it with black thread, then leaned on me to keep me from wriggling. His face had that angry, glazed over look, as he hit me to keep me from thrashing against the restraints. He sewed my labia together with the black thread. I could barely breathe as the needle went through me. The sewing seemed to take forever. Jim's elbow dug into my stomach as he leaned his weight on me and he pinched my tiny parts closed for the stitching. He was growling out things at me as he worked. I don't remember anything he said, but as I saw his face over me, I knew that he was out of his mind. I ended up puking from the panic and pain. That only seemed to enrage him further, though. He got the scissors, cut the thread, untied me and then turned me over to lie in the vomit and beat me with his belt. When he was satisfied, he climbed the basement steps and left the room with a bang of the door. Choking and gagging from the trauma, I crawled off the table, towards a dark corner and huddled there for a long time. I was silent and sucked my thumb as tears streamed down my hot face. Numbness drifted over me as I rocked myself and wondered what I could do to not be wicked. I was sorry that I was bad. I put my fists to my eyes for a long time, watching as black spots like stars appeared behind my lids. Like the stars that floated in my eyes, I wanted to float away from the pain. Maybe for a little while, I could be a pretty bird and fly out on the soft breeze, then sit on the swaying branch of a tree and call to the other birds who would come and snuggle me with fluffed feathers. And before I knew it, I was up in the very tiptop leaves singing happy songs with all of my pretty bird friends. That day was the beginning of me learning different ways to escape…through my mind._

"You're doing so well, Bella," Carlisle whispered to me as a teardrop splashed onto my forearm.

I had brought my knees up to my chest, in an unconscious defensive gesture, and had my arms wrapped tightly around my shins, giving me something to hold onto. I nodded in his direction but kept my eyes on my new favorite squiggly line. I sighed and continued with different pieces of my story.

"For seemingly no fucking reason at all, Jim began pulling up my dress and putting his cigarettes out on my leg…and inner thighs. I would cry and beg him not to do it anymore. He would smack my mouth with his big, rough hand, telling me that I could only speak to him when he asked it of me. I mean, even one burn can feel excruciating to a small leg. I would do my best to stay far away from him when he smoked."

I cleared my throat again and flashed my eyes up at Carlisle to see his sympathetic stare on me. He smiled reassuringly.

"I don't remember feeling angry with Jim. I remember feeling sorry that I was so bad…so evil. I thought that my daddy was so strong and handsome, everyone in town loved him…he made my mom happy. I wanted nothing more than to please him. I tried very hard. Um, when he came home from shopping, one time, I remember running to him with my arms outstretched for a hug, like I had seen mom do with him…I remember the hurt that I felt when he sidestepped that hug. After that, I learned not to touch him."

_Getting tied to a chair in the dining room became a frequent punishment for my minor mistakes. Jim would grab my hair, yanking on it and say, "You laugh and are always happy just like that dirty kike, Joan of Arc. Everyone loved her, and they love you. You steal people away with your ridiculous laughter. I think you should burn, just like she did." Jim lit a match and held it up to my face. "I will burn you, Isabella. All of your fair skin will melt off and you will be so fucking ugly. I bet you won't laugh anymore then, little girl." He held the match to the ends of my hair and then would hold it along my arms that were tied down and unable to escape the heat._

I squinted my eyes and ran a hand through my hair before continuing in my hollow, subdued voice. "The memories I have of abuse when I was that small have the strongest emotional intensity for me, since I hadn't yet learned the mind's trick of dissociating away from the pain," I informed Carlisle.

"Mm-hmm," he hummed in agreement, his pen flying furiously across the pages of his journal.

"When my mom was around, or Bobby got home from school, the torture stopped. When mom was home, Jim was nice to me, as though I wasn't evil anymore. It confused me at first, but then I quickly figured out that Renee equaled my safety. If I was in her presence or within touching distance, I wouldn't be harmed. So, I clung to her when I could."

I gave a small smile then at the thought of my mother. "Mom was always fun. I got piggyback rides and she would softly brush my hair every morning…we would play with my dolls and have tickle fights on the floor. My favorite thing was to cuddle up in her lap when she read me stories. She would always give me kisses and would lightly blow on my neck, making me laugh at the tickling goosebumps…" I trailed off wistfully.

Carlisle smiled warmly at me, clearly glad for at least one good person in my childhood. My mother was good to me. Clueless, but very good, all the same.

I got quiet then, remembering when Isabella started coming around. I sniffled and began my explanation of her.

"Isabella was a friend who started showing up in the basement with me, in the long black hours of silence and imagination. I don't remember the particular day that she arrived, but I have very clear memories of her..."

_"Your daddy doesn't like you," she informed me.  
"He's your daddy, too."  
"No. Today, I'll have a new daddy. Come cuddle up with me in the corner, away from the stinky place, and I'll tell you all about our new daddy."  
"Okay," I agreed, vividly seeing Isabella in the darkness. My new friend was the exact replica of me, like a twin sister. I had always wanted one of those. She had long, silky brown hair with shiny blonde highlights that seemed to glow in the blackness of the basement. She was full of ideas and mischief.  
"Our new daddy has long fingers that will tickle our back, and he likes to sing to us. Listen. I will teach you a song."  
And in the dark basement, she sang in a clear, sweet voice that mimicked my own, making up different ballads with silly words. She also thought of games for the two of us to play. The basement became a more regular occurrence. Isabella, my imaginary, escapist friends, became more real to me in the isolation of the long, locked-away basement hours. In the beginning, she could do wonderful, amazing things; she could fly, breathe under water, and could even dare to be angry._

One time, my mother went on a trip and I was thrown down into the basement for what seemed like an eternity. I banged my head again and again on the basement door at the top of the steps. At first, I screamed and cried, then as time wore on...I just sucked my thumb. I worried that I had been forgotten. I wet my panties. I was thirsty and hungry. I poked my fingers to my closed eyes to see the spots of color as a contrast to the absolute blackness of my confined space. I remember thinking my thumb had juice in it. My thirst was tamed by sucking my thumb constantly. Soon, I had to go to the bathroom, but I held it, causing my stomach to cramp until I was doubled over in pain. Finally, I just went to a corner in the basement and relieved myself, wiping afterwards with my wet panties. I sat in the stinky black basement and waited. And waited.  
"I'm here," Isabella whispered. "We can't stay here though, Bella. It's stinky. Let's go to the park. Or, no! The zoo."  
"We can't go, we have to stay here."  
"No! See the elephant over there reaching out with a peanut? Don't let the slobber on the end of his trunk get on you, though. Let's ask him for a ride!"  
"I call dibs on throwing pieces of bread to the bears. I like the one that claps," I said, joining in on the fun of her game.  
"If you're nice and sweet, the monkey will come over to the bars and touch your fingers. Maybe we could go through the bars and swing on the tire inside with the whole monkey family. I bet we can hang upside down by our knees."  
"Do you think the mommy monkey will try to pick things out of our hair? I bet it'll tickle. She might let us hold her baby. Come here, Fuzzy. Let's call him that, because he's all soft. Baby thingys are always soft."  
"Look! He's coming to us. He likes us. Hold your hand out. Sloooowly. Oh, good. He's letting you pet him. He likes to nibble on fingers."  
After hours of adventure, we were back in the basement, cramped and thirsty.  
Isabella said, "He's a meanie to leave us in here. I'm bored, there's nothing to do. It's not fair that he put us in here. I'm getting really mad. You know what we should do? Let's go play with the boo-boo ca-ca in the corner. It's soft and squishy…"  
I shook my head.  
"Let's smear it on the walls and leave it for Daddy to clean up. That's what he gets for leaving us down here."  
"No! We can't do that, he'll hurt us."  
"I don't care! He might leave us down here for ever and ever, until our skin rots and falls off."  
"Please don't get us in trouble," I pleaded.  
Isabella went to the pile of feces and picked it up in her small hands as I watched with my magic eyes that could see in the blackness. I watched in fascination as she smeared and painted all over the walls, getting it in our fingers and hair, letting it cover us in angry satisfaction.  
When the basement door finally opened, Jim let out an angry growl as he grabbed my hair and yanked me up the steps, out into the hallway. "What the fuck?"  
"My friend did it, Daddy. I'm sorry! She did it."  
"You're an evil little liar!" He beat me with a leather belt, making the welts burn as he chanted, " I will give you purity Isabella." When he was done, he grabbed my arm and shoved me back into the basement, pushing me down the cement steps.  
Crying, I said, "See, Isabella, being mad doesn't help…just makes it worse."  
"It was worth it," she told me, beginning our lifetime of differences on how to deal with Jim.

I was down in the basement for so long, I remember lying on the floor, drifting in and out of dreams of water. I was so thirsty. When the door was finally opened, I was only in a semiconscious state. I couldn't walk. Jim picked me up and carried me to my bed. He was so nice to me, I think he was worried that I was dying. He turned on cartoons and brought me chicken soup, and a grilled cheese sandwich with the crusts cut off. Just how I like it. I was too weak to eat, though…so he fed me.

I looked up from my squiggly line that I had focused on again to see Carlisle staring at me with a very intrigued, but sad expression…his gaze always on me, but his pen always moving. I gave him a small smile to let him know that I was okay, then continued on. It was like the floodgates had opened suddenly.

Isabella showed me a memory of my surgery, so I decided to talk about that next…

_I was getting alarmingly thin. The doctors had decided that I was malnourished because of all the infections I'd had and said that my tonsils should come out. I went to the hospital. My mother had given me a bear that I had named Pooh, although he was a teddy bear and not really a true Pooh bear. I remember getting strapped to a table and looking at a man with a mask on his face. I suddenly panicked, thinking that this was the man Jim had told me he was going to give me away to, and that I was about to have the white-hot fire pain inside of me again. I began struggling and screaming in my state of absolute panic. The doctor tried to calm me down by telling me, "I'm going to put a cloth that smells like orange juice over your nose and mouth. Just breathe deeply." The instant he put the cloth on my face, I knew he lied. It didn't smell like orange juice. And then everything went black. When I woke up, only my throat was sore, not my ass, and the nurse dressed in white gave me icecream to eat. I cowered in the bed and asked her where the bad man was, and when he was coming to get me. She laughed and said, "There are no bad men here, sweetheart. What you saw was a doctor." During my hospital stay, Pooh bear and I became inseparable. Because I was so skinny, they kept me in the hospital for a few extra days. Mommy came every night, and all the nurses were nice. The doctor who had scared me and lied to me brought me a hand puppet and apologized with it for scaring me. The nurses rubbed my back and put lotion on me. One had beautiful reddish brown hair. I didn't want to leave that man, with the kind voice and gentle touch. I knew Jim didn't want me to come back home._

"The year before kindergarten was an extremely long nightmare. I lived in a constant state of anxiety and terror…"

_Jim grabbed my hand and yanked it on top of the cutting board. He pressed the meat cleaver to the back of my fingers and said, "I'm going to cut off all your fingers and make pickles with them, Isabella. Then I'll give them to Mommy and Bobby with their dinner. They will love them…very crunchy and so small...so tasty. They won't even know they're eating your fingers." I sobbed as I stood there, waiting for the big cleaver to come smashing down._

"His eyes would always dart around in an excited way as his tales of my intended torture got worse. The light would catch the blue and browns of his eyes as he scanned his chaotic, sick mind for plans of what he would do next. It wasn't very long before I learned to recognize those eyes and know that all I could do in the presence of their wildness was just…endure. Screaming and begging never helped me."

"I practiced getting dressed and playing, using only my thumbs. I got really good at pretending that I had no fingers. I decided that the hardest thing would be fastening buttons and tying up my shoes. I worried about it so much because I was so certain that one day Jim would actually cut my fingers off."

"Jim's conversations when I was alone with him, while mom was at work and Bobby was at school, were becoming increasingly sadistic…"

_"I would like to just cut you all up, Isabella. I could cook you with the wine and mushrooms and have a dinner party, serving pot roast of Isabella to all of our guests and friends." He took out a cookbook and read me various recipes, telling me all the new ways that I could be cooked and eaten. "I think your fuckable little ass will look just like a pork roast if I surround it with red potatoes. What do you think Mommy will say when she learns that she's actually eating you? Do you think she'll like the taste of your ass, Isabella?" I sat quietly, sucking my thumb and feeling sad that my family would eat me. I worried about what it would be like to be eaten, and worried if my mom would, in fact, like the taste of me._

"Jim talked to an angel. I was terrified of him whenever he would speak to it, because it told him that I was evil and wicked…and needed to be punished. I guess that's when I should have figured out that he was a fucking psychotic, but when I was that little, all I knew was that I was petrified. Jim would begin pacing back and forth, slamming things around…all the while, babbling nonsense to his angel. This usually happened right before I would be hurt again."

I cleared my throat again. It was getting dry. "I absolutely believed in the reality of his angel. In great detail, Jim would describe to me the seven foot tall angel with enormous feathered wings that she kept wrapped around her white gown, almost like a fur coat…he told me, "This is a special angel that God has sent me. She is a Christian angel. She knows all about evil kikes like you. She'll be watching you for me. She fucking understands that filth like you should have never been born."

"Jim could see her, and speak to her, and although this fucking angel was invisible to me, I could swear that I caught a glimpse of that wicked bitch. There were many times that I tried to talk to this angel…I would say things like, 'I'm sorry that I'm a kike' 'please don't hurt me' 'can you tell daddy to stop hurting me?' …all of it went unanswered, of course. It was clear to me that this angel wanted me dead."

I sighed and soldiered on for just a little longer. "There was this time that Jim tried to drown me…"

_I was in the old pedestal bathtub getting my hair washed. I was wriggling around and whimpering because shampoo had gotten in my eyes. Jim was talking to that damn invisible angel of his when he suddenly grabbed me and plunged me under the water. I looked up through the warm water at Jim's face above me. His wide, icy blue eyes stared down at me, and some of his blonde hair fell into his eyes. His lips were pressed together as though he was holding his breath, counting the seconds of my oxygen supply. I kicked and struggled, feeling the panic of not being able to breathe. Then I melted into the black abyss and the next thing I knew, I was lying on the cold bathroom tiles, coughing and vomiting up water. Jim watched me struggle to get air back in my lungs through my suddenly sore and raw throat, while muttering, "I wish I could kill you, you dirty little kike. I fucking hate you. You are stealing your mother away from me."_

**Bella, I don't wanna talk about this anymore...** Isabella whined.

_Me either…_

**Where's my Edward?**

_Outside._

I looked up from the desk then and put my feet back on the floor. I stretched my arms above my head. "Um…yeah, that's not even really scratching the surface, Carlisle…but I don't want to go on about Jim anymore today," I informed him. "If that's alright?" I added as an afterthought, not sure if I was being rude.

He was the doctor, after all. He got to choose what we talked about.

**Of course it's motherfucking alright, Bell! Don't you let this douchebag make you talk about that shit…I personally don't wanna hear about it anymore.** Marie commented.

CPOV

"That's fine, Bella…we've made remarkable progress today. How do you feel?" I asked while handing her a tissue.

I honestly hadn't expected to get her to open up this much in our first session, but it looks like I lucked out in that department. I made sure to record everything. Ever single word out of her mouth was vital to this therapy session. The events of her childhood are definitely horrific, but at least now we can begin to further understand the depth of what her and Isabella had to endure, and we can also know how to better handle Isabella and what to expect from her.

"Fucking. Dandy," she said.

At a closer look, I realized that Marie had come into awareness.

"What would you like to talk about today, Marie?" I asked her.

"No fucking idea, doctor dad. What do you want to talk about?" she countered with a smirk.

"How about, why you are here…?" I headged, hopefully.

She smiled. "That's easy. I am here because of all the mystical bullshit in your supernatural world. It really is lovely, isn't it?" she asked slyly with bright eyes and a nod of her head.

"Well…"

"I mean, I wonder what kind of powers my Bell will have once you change her into one of you tricky fucking bloodsuckers. Will she shoot laser beams out her eyes? Fireballs out her ass? Teleport places? The possibilities are both fuckawesome _and_ endless…" she trailed off with a smile, cocking her head to the side.

She sat back in her chair then, and pulled her legs up to sit Indian style. She rested her elbows on her knees, put her chin in her hands and stared at me intently.

"What's your power, doc?" she asked after a minute of silence.

"I don't have one," I informed her.

"Bummer."

"Yes. Bummer."

"Indeed," she agreed with raised eyebrows.

"So getting back to why you are here…" I trailed off suggestively.

"Right. Well, doc…vampires and werewolves are all fine and fluffy, until shit gets complicated. Like, when your vamped out boyfriend's brother trying to _eat you_ at your goddamn birthday party. Like, your best friend turning into a gigantic, snarling wolf right before your fucking eyes. Like, a pair of sick, twisted vampire _fucks_ hunting you down, intent on your demise. Oh, and then…you'll love this part," she hinted with a smirk and a bit of amusement. "One of those fucking vampires actually gets a hold of you…" she trailed off before her tone became clipped and her face hard, "and _toys_ with you, before he breaks your fucking leg…oh no, but not before he bites you, sending indescribable burning fire rushing through your veins, making you believe that you are being burned alive," she growled out with a pointed glare my way.

I just stayed quiet, knowing that she wasn't done with her rant. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, trying to calm herself.

When she opened them back up, she continued on. "Oh, and then these motherfucking demented Italian, prissy uptight goddamn _pricks_...these vampires from another land want to kill you also. They actually say it...threaten it to your face. While your vampire boyfriend stands watch. Un-fucking-acceptable. And your best friend, who is a goddamn _werewolf_, by the way, gets all pissy with you and abandons you, after your vampire boyfriend abandons you, all while the second twisted fuck that I told you about a second ago, is still out to get you. She is hunting you down like a goddamn dog, and you just _know_…can just fucking sense that she is close. Close to her goal of ripping out your beating heart, just right the fuck out of your chest, in the most brutal of ways…probably only to eat it right in front of you as you lay dying on the goddamn cold, hard ground."

"I see…" I trailed off.

I knew what Bella had been through was traumatic, but she had never complained. I guess none of us ever took the time to see things from her point of view.

"Oh, I don't think you do," she scoffed quickly. "I haven't even gotten to the best part, doc. So lean the fuck back in your ritzy ass, expensive chair and enjoy my motherfucking story," she insisted with a hard look.

"Alright, fair enough. I would love to hear your story, Marie," I encouraged, as I grabbed my pen off the desk, prepared to start a new page of information.

She nodded and began, keeping her chin relaxed in her hands. "I'm not going into details like my Bell, though. So don't get your panties all in a twist when I don't fucking _elaborate_ shit for you," she pointed out, keeping up our eye contact.

I nodded.

"I beat people who try to hurt my Bell. I kill people who try to fuck her, _or_ take a knife to her. I absolutely love doing it…I enjoy seeing the light go out in those motherfucker's eyes. Knowing that I'm the last thing those filthy assholes see before I send them off to hell, is a blissed out high like no other. It makes me fucking wet," she informed me with a devilish smirk.

_…what? Edward, violence is a sexual turn-on for Marie_ I told my son, knowing this was a problem everyone needed to be informed of, and that he had been on the other side of that damn door, hanging onto her every word.

I wrote down everything she said, as she said it.

"I protect my Bell, simply because she _is_ mine, and I take care of what is _mine_. I steal. I do not lie. I don't understand why people do, it's fucking stupid. I don't give a damn about other people's thoughts or feelings. Shit like that just doesn't matter to me. I can't fucking _stand_ sleep. It's a ridiculous concept and I hate doing it. Waste. Of. My. Fucking. Time. I sell drugs. I believe that school is motherfucking pointless. And, goddamn it, I love me some loud fuckin music while tokin on a joint," she informed me.

I wrote it all down, and when I looked back up to her face, I could sense a change in her demeanor.

She sighed and kicked her legs out in front of her.

She leaned back in the chair.

She sighed again.

"Isabella?" I guessed.

A flash of recognition flashed in her eyes, but she didn't respond. Instead, she narrowed her eyes at me, pursing her lips while she was at it.

"Would you like to talk today, too?" I asked her softly.

"Fuck..." she trailed off, tilting her head to the side, "Off," she finished, keeping her narrowed eyes on mine.

"You don't have to talk, if you don't want to," I assured her.

She didn't respond, just kept her surprisingly cold glare on me. After three minutes of silence and uncomfortable staring, she spoke.

"Bella won't forget me."

"Okay."

"Edward wants to keep me."

"I know."

She rose from her seat then, and sauntered slowly to the corner of my desk.

"So then, leave us the _fuck_ alone," she demanded in her quiet, childish voice, then reached out a quick hand to fling my leather journal off the desk and onto the ground.

I sighed, not wanting to react to her behavior and bent down to pick up my journal. When I had it situated back on my desk, I looked up to see Isabella walking towards the door. I looked at the clock and noticed that it had been almost a two-hour session.

I smiled. We certainly accomplished a lot today.


	25. My Mate

A/N:

Short but vital chapter ~~ The next one will be longer, I pinky promise! :)

* * *

EPOV

"How come?" she mumbled.

"Because I said so," I insisted.

"But why?"

"Just don't, angel," I scolded gently.

"But…he made me mad," she insisted with a pout.

I nodded. "Ok, so then I want you to say that. Tell him, sweetheart. Let him know your feelings. Can you do that for me next time?" I asked while staring intently into her eyes.

She shrugged delicately while giving me a questioning look.

"Say, 'you're making me mad'," I suggested. "You are a sweet girl, and sweet girls don't say 'fuck off', Isabella," I admonished her.

"But, how come?"

"Because it's not nice, baby."

She huffed. "Edward, I don't _like_ it," she informed me, then stuck her lollipop back in her mouth.

I sighed. "I know, sweetheart…"

We were downstairs in the living room. I had Isabella sitting in my lap while I rocked in her on our lazy boy microfiber recliner. I rubbed her back softly and she cuddled herself close to my chest. She had one hand glued to the lollipop stick hanging out of her mouth, while the other hand continued to travel softly through my hair. Sometimes her fingers would lightly scratch my scalp, sometimes those fingers would twirl different strands, other times she would just comb her fingers through it. No matter what she chose to do, that hand stayed in my hair. I figured out quickly that it was comforting for her. I guess we had that in common…sometimes, she just needed to play with some hair too.

Her Cars movie was playing on the flat screen hanging from the wall. Sometimes her attention was focused on it, but sometimes her eyes would have a far away look in them…I was extremely worried that she was reliving those terrible things I heard my Bella speak of, not thirty minutes ago.

I had stayed outside of Carlisle's study and sat with my back against that door, trying to keep my body as close to her as possible, even if we couldn't be in the same room together. There was no use in going back to our room, or occupying myself on my piano, or reading, because I knew that no matter where I was in the house, I would still know every single excruciating detail of what happened in her therapy session, so I decided to just stay close. Probably more for my own comfort, than hers.

My family had come home shortly after the session started. It had begun an hour late because of Isabella's avoidance. And then I had to go and act like a damn _girl_, needing reassurance from my Bella while she had made a brief appearance…so when the session was supposed to be wrapping up and coming to an end, it was actually just getting started. Their talk had lasted the good part of two hours, also.

So, it was needless to say that Carlisle and I weren't the only ones who had their senses assaulted with the horrific tales of my Bella's abuse. Tales that, apparently, were 'very tame' and 'just the beginning' of her terrible childhood. We could all hear her broken, hollow voice. Everyone could smell her tears. All of us were aware when Marie decided to come around and voice her opinion of Bella's experience in our supernatural world. We also knew when Isabella had come back out at the very end…telling Carlisle to 'fuck off', then leaving his study in a very rude manner.

In fact, that was the matter I was trying to address with her right now. It was my current dilemma…she had to stop being so damn hostile with him, but at the moment, I was absolutely not willing to punish her for it. We were both emotionally drained after the morning's events and I didn't think I had it in me right now to be a heartless bastard, adding to all of her stress by spanking her ass for it.

She had come out of the study, and before I knew what I was doing, I had her in my arms, holding her tightly to my chest. I hated hearing those words coming out of my Bella's mouth, and my anxiety was spiked just knowing that she was only getting started in revealing the evils of her past. I couldn't even imagine what else had happened to my precious angel. She was so delicate, so fragile. That's all my mind could register at the moment; my sweet Bella needed me. Needed my protection. Needed my comfort. And I would give it all willingly.

Isabella clung to me.

She sniffled and mumbled, "My Edward, you wanna keep me?"

My voice was hoarse from my turmoil of emotions as I whispered my reassurance in her ear. "Always, baby girl…always want to keep you. You are mine."

"Mine…" she agreed softly in my ear.

A few minutes later, she asked for a lollipop, telling me that she always had one after she had to see the 'mean doctors'. I immediately obliged. Whatever she wanted, she could have. I just needed to see that adorable smile on her face again.

I also needed to bleach out my goddamn brain to get rid of the knowledge of someone hurting her when I wasn't there to stop it. But I knew that wasn't realistic. Although, I was surprised at how much it pissed me off that the evil ability granted to me was being able to read minds…and not being able to forget. Simply because I was a vampire, I would never be able to forget any of this. Our memory never faded, never became weak. It was as sharp as any of our other keen senses.

And I fucking hated it.

"Edward?" she asked in her soft, sweet voice, bringing me back to the present moment.

"Yes, baby?" I asked keeping my tone soft and calm for her.

I couldn't let her know how upset all of this was making me. It would only fuel her desire to avoid therapy and show hostility towards Carlisle. I needed to appear that I supported her therapy sessions, and agreed with Carlisle's view on things. A 'united front' was what we were trying to display. I had to keep up appearances, for my Bella's sake.

She sighed and looked away from the screen, into my eyes. "But how come? Why, though?" she asked with a curious expression.

"Why what, angel?"

"How come _your_ daddy wants to know about _my_ daddy? Why does he want to know about my owwies? How come he won't leave me alone? He was makin me mad…" she said.

"He wants to know so that he can make you feel better about it, eventually," I informed her.

"Don't wanna tell him no more about it, though…" she said with a shake of her head.

I kissed her forehead. "Shhh…" I shushed her before bringing her head down to it's spot on my shoulder.

I knew how she felt. I didn't want to hear about it anymore, but it appeared that neither of us would be getting our way on the matter.

She continued to suck on her candy and twirl the stick around in her mouth while she focused back on her movie. Her hand stayed trailing lazily through my messy hair. Soon, her fingers started to slow and her breathing became deeper. I knew that she was getting tired and that it was probably due to emotional exhaustion.

I kept up my slow rocking pace, and watched the movie playing on the screen without really paying attention. I was too occupied with the angel in my arms, monitoring how she was slowly slipping into unconsciousness.

When I knew she was asleep six minutes later, I gently took that lollipop out of her mouth, surprised when it was only the stick that came out. Wow…she had devoured that thing. No traces of candy left.

The family had eventually joined us in the living room while Isabella was sleeping. I didn't bother to turn the movie off. I just sat there, methodically rocking her in my arms, in somewhat of a trance…staring at a tiny crack on the white wall in front of me.

I hadn't realized until Emmett looked on with concern, that both of my arms had instinctually enveloped her form, tucking her completely into me, hiding most of her body from my family's view. A second later, I noticed the light rumble subtly humming deep in my chest. It was quiet enough to be just a purr, but my family wasn't that stupid . Their instincts told them not to mistake it for a content fucking _purr_.

I had taken a very natural protective stance over her. But, goddamn it…I couldn't help myself. The ingrained need in me to protect my mate was fucking fierce right now.

I was, however, in no way trying to imply to my family that I thought they would harm her. I was suddenly desperate for them to understand that, but before I could explain, I already knew from the instant flow of their thoughts that they understood my position, not taking offense to it at all.

I kept her body pressed close to mine while continuing the slow rocking pace of this chair, making sure my angel stayed lulled to sleep. I tore my gaze away from the white wall to give my family a look of appreciation for keeping their distance right now. While I was in the recliner in one corner of the room, they kept to the complete opposite side, sitting on the couch, or standing.

Everyone seemed to be in a very somber mood this afternoon, and I knew it was because of my Bella's therapy session.

Alice stared at the girl in my arms, with a sad look of longing on her face. I knew from her thoughts that she wanted nothing more than to just hug the crap out of Bella right now, but she knew it wouldn't be a very smart move to get too close…or to try and wake her. Or to try and remove her from my arms to give her that intended hug.

I gave my favorite sister a sympathetic look, letting her know that I understood her need to comfort her best friend, but I also kept the very blatant warning in my stare.

_Stay the fuck away._

She understood, knowing and seeing in a vision that I wouldn't be so damn uptight in a few hours time.

Emmett and Jasper sympathized with me. While Emmett's thoughts were clouded with anger, protectiveness and brotherly concern, Jasper worried about how he might be able to keep Alice in check in times like these, and also, how to help Bella's emotions during therapy. He sat on the couch and planned different techniques while sending my sleepy girl calming waves to keep the nightmares away while she lay peacefully in my arms.

Jasper cared a great deal for my Bella. He wanted to prove those feelings to her, but was unsure of how to do that and keep her at a distance at the same time. He held onto an incredible amount of guilt from the incident on her 18th birthday, and the resulting events of it. The resulting events were my own fault though, because I was the dumbass who made the decision to leave her, but that's not how Jasper viewed things. He wanted to be friends with Bella, but wanted to keep her safe at the same time. Keeping her safe required distance from him. He knew this and was extremely ashamed of his own weakness with his natural bloodlust.

His thoughts were now going into overdrive on how to help Bella from afar. He was determined to make therapy as comfortable as possible for her.

Rosalie kept her eyes on the animated movie playing on the tv, but her thoughts of sympathy for my Bella were reluctantly pouring out of her. While she couldn't relate to what had happened to my Bella at such a young age, she _could_ relate to being sexually assaulted.

I didn't want to sound like an asshole, but from what we've heard so far on what had happened to my Bella, everyone knew that it was so much more worse than what had happened to Rosalie decades ago before her change. I didn't have to voice that to her though, for she had already acknowledged that fact. And the fact that my Bella was not crazy, as Rosalie had initially thought. Bella was just very strong mentally, making her a survivor. She had been all her life. We both knew that her bitterness on being raped and regretting her change seemed almost insignificant in the light of my Bella's situation.

I was still angry with Rosalie though, even now, because while I could read her sympathetic thoughts, I also acknowledged her thoughts of jealousy. She didn't want everyone fawning over Bella and catering to her. She did not want Bella to steal the spotlight away. My sister's ugliness truly knew no bounds.

Esme and Carlisle's thoughts shone through with an overwhelming concern and protective instincts over the special girl in my arms. They truly viewed her as a daughter…a child all their own. Those feelings were only amplified with the arrival of Isabella.

Esme absolutely adored that side of my Bella, and right now her motherly instincts were kicking into high gear. It was ridiculous how much our urges were practically the same right now. I saw in her mind how _she_ longed to be the one rocking my Bella in this incredibly soft and comfortable chair. Her fingers practically itched with the need to reach out and run soft caresses through my angel's long, silky hair.

I gave her the same look I had given Alice a minute ago. My gaze never faltered, but stayed full of both understanding and warning.

_Stay away. She is **mine**._

Carlisle was very concerned. He wondered what else had happened to my Bella, and he knew that information would most likely have to come from her alternate, Isabella. They were _her_ memories, after all. She had taken them over so that Bella wouldn't continue being haunted by them. He was also sad that Isabella was showing such intense hatred for him.

I felt sorry for him, for he had done nothing wrong. It was Isabella's prejudices hindering their relationship. While I had made it crystal fucking clear to him that he should and would not react to Isabella or Marie's behavior, I had also promised him that I would handle it. I would not have him yelling at either of them, or trying to be 'firm'. As much as he wanted to view himself as a father figure for her, he was not. Bella was _my_ mate. _My_ responsibility. If her, or her alternates, needed a firm hand, _I_ would take care of it.

No one else.

It all went back to my main thought, chanting a mantra in a cycle through my mind right now: _Stay the fuck away. She is mine._

That being said, the girls were not allowed to be disrespectful towards Carlisle. Or any of my family, for that matter. I wouldn't let Isabella get away with her rude behavior anymore. This morning was not an exception to that rule, I just chose to handle it lightly. But in the future, she would learn that her behavior with Carlisle in general, in or outside of therapy, was to remain respectful.

I made that abundantly clear to her at the dinner table last night, so I was surprised when she had completely disregarded her promise to be to 'be a good girl' and told him outright to "fuck off", right before sending his leather journal crashing to the floor, scuffing up the edge of it and bending some pages.

His thoughts constantly warned me of his suspicions about Isabella and what we should expect her to display as her normal behavior. It would be the behavior of an abused child. She could be reclusive and shy sometimes, and other times we had to expect some disturbing outbursts, and her anger.

Isabella was essentially a mini-Marie. She was an alternate personality, capable of incredible anger and odd behavior. I had to keep in mind that all of Bella's feelings of resentment and anger as a child due to her extreme stress and abuse, were invested right into Isabella. I bet she could have a temper that rivaled Marie's extreme one. After all, Isabella has existed a long time in comparison to Marie. She would have more control and understanding over her own emotions, while Marie wears her heart on her sleeve. Marie acts out on instinct without a second thought. Isabella just may have the capacity to think before she acts. She might actually possess some common sense in that area.

Hopefully.

My girl started to stir in my arms. I tightened my hold on her. I let the fingers on my left hand trail lightly along her side, where they could reach without having to actually move my hand from it's firmly placed spot.

Her eyes fluttered open two minutes later. She looked up at me and I smiled at her beautiful chocolate eyes.

She giggled lightly. "Edward?"

"Yes, baby?"

"You're makin funny noises, huh?" she said with a small smile, referring to the low growl in my chest that her ear was currently pressed against.

"Mm-hmmm," I answered with a nod.

She sat up, so I reluctantly loosened my hold on her. But only fractionally. Once she was comfortable again, she asked, "How come?"

I gave her an Eskimo kiss and she gave me an adorable smile that thankfully eased some of my anxiety.

"Just 'cause, baby…" I placated her, not wanting to explain my over protective instincts right now.

She turned her head then, noticing for the first time, that my entire family was in the room with us. She had never seen all of them at once before. She switched up her position, putting her back to my chest and layed her head back on my shoulder, but never took her intent gaze off of her new vampire family. She didn't know it yet, but we were a large coven who loved her and would protect her with our undead lives.

I kissed her temple. "Say hello, Isabella," I murmured softly against her warm skin.

She sighed. After a minute of silence, sans the Cars movie playing on the screen, she looked at Esme and said softly, "Hi, Edward's mommy."

Esme smiled, happy that Isabella had singled her out. It made her feel special. "Hello, dear."

"Can I have a pop?" she asked Esme sweetly.

"Isabella, it's almost time for lunch. Maybe afterwards," I answered her.

"Kay."

Her gaze went to Alice next. Alice had a ridiculous grin on her face and was staring intently at my little girl. Her excited urge to hug Isabella and be her best friend forever was practically exploding out of her.

"Marie told me you're my bestie…" Isabella hedged shyly to Alice.

"I am," Alice squeaked confidently, making Isabella giggle a little.

"Kay…hi," she practically whispered.

"Hi!" Alice said brightly, making Isabella giggle again and simultaneously grip my arm that I had wrapped around her thin waist.

It appeared that she wanted to be friends with the pretty pixie before her, but was still nervous about it, apparently.

Alice went and sat on Jasper's lap then, bringing Isabella's focus on him next.

He smiled at her when he caught her gaze. "Hi there, Isabella. I'm Jasper and this here, is Alice, my very special girl. You two are going to be great friends," he told her with a southern twang.

Isabella blushed and smiled shyly at him, but didn't say anything. Her grip on my arm stayed firm.

I ran my fingers through her long hair as she fixed her gaze onto Emmett next. I thought that his size alone would make her apprehensive, but it didn't. She didn't show any of them fear by the sweet smell of her adrenaline, only nervousness in her gaze.

"Hey shorty," Emmett greeted in a fun-loving way.

Isabella's hand moved from my arm and suddenly went to grip my thumb instead. She kept her wide eyes on Emmett, but didn't speak. For the longest time, they stared at each other. Emmett knew to give her time to adjust, so he just kept a smile on his face and nodded at her every couple of seconds. Isabella finally spoke.

"You're big," she stated.

He laughed. "Yes, and you are short."

She gave him a small smile, but then sobered her look. She glanced over at Rosalie before she asked him curiously, "How come the lady with yellow hair hits you?"

"Aw, she just likes it rough," he said jokingly, trying to placate her.

That statement was disgustingly true, but he was speaking without thinking.

Again.

Before anyone could speak up to him about it though, Isabella took everyone completely off guard, and asked, "You fuck her hard?"

Rosalie gave a little gasp and turned to stare at Isabella.

When Isabella caught her gaze, she narrowed her eyes into a cold glare, and muttered, "Ugly yellow hair…"

"Hey," I whispered in her ear. "Be nice."

"That's none of your business," Rosalie told her.

"He just made it my business," Isabella shot right back.

"No, he didn't," Rosalie insisted. "It's rude to ask things like that," she added, apparently trying to teach my girl some manners.

I squinted my eyes at Rosalie in warning and Emmett gave her a look that clearly said, 'don't start anything'.

"_You're_ rude," Isabella countered.

Rosalie rolled her eyes and turned her gaze back to the tv.

"I don't _like_ you," Isabella added a few seconds later.

I stopped my slow rocking and tightened my hold on her. "That's enough, baby girl. You need to apologize to Carlisle," I insisted with a nod in his direction, taking her focus off of Rosalie.

She turned and shot me a betrayed look. "But _why_?"

"Because you were rude to him in his office."

"Was not, he made me mad," she supplied.

"That's not an excuse," I insisted. "We've been over this. Next time, you tell him that he's making you mad. You don't tell people to 'fuck off', Isabella. That's bad."

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"Can I have a pop?"

I sighed. "After lunch, baby. Now, apologize."

"Can I go play outside?"

"Tell him you're sorry."

"Can I draw in my book and color?"

"Say you're sorry."

"Can I go get my dolly?"

"Now, Isabella."

"Can we watch another funny movie?"

"Stop it, baby."

"Can I have a lolly?"

"No."

"Wanna help me make somethin with my pretty play-doh that sparkles?"

I kissed her temple. "Isabella…stop. Right now. Just apologize, and then after lunch you can go do all those things," I assured her softly.

"But can we get in Marie's box and play with all the little beadies?"

"Sweetheart-"

"I can make you something pretty, huh?"

"Isabella, if you-"

"I'll draw you another picture, Edward."

"Not right this-"

"Let's play," she suggested brightly.

_Fucking hell._

She was very skilled in avoidance tactics, obviously.

Emmett snickered, but tried to hide it. He wasn't doing a very good job.

I lightly gripped her chin and turned her gaze to mine. I needed her to _focus_. "Stop avoiding it, Isabella. Listen to me and do as your told," I told her.

She started lightly sucking on her lips, occasionally tugging them with her teeth. After a few seconds, she said, "I'm thirsty. Do you got a juice box?"

I nodded and let go of her chin. "Apologize."

She furrowed her brow at me and whined. "But, Edwaaaard…"

I hardened my gaze then. She was still avoiding it, and whining was against the fucking rules. "Now," I told her firmly.

She dropped her gaze from mine and sighed. A few seconds later, I heard, "Sorry," she being muttered under her breath.

"Nooo, angel…not to me. Apologize to Carlisle," I clarified.

She gasped and looked back up into my eyes. "But he gots ugly yellow hair," she stressed.

I shook my head and glared at her. This hair thing was going to have to stop.

"Now," I repeated.

After a minute, she actually returned my glare with one of her own. Then she went and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Don't. Wanna." she stated defiantly with a slow shake of her head.

I hooked my hands under her shoulders and stood from the recliner then, keeping her in my arms. Her legs wrapped around my waist as I gripped her tightly to me, still feeling ridiculously protective.

As I headed for the staircase and passed by Carlisle, I assured him in a sincere voice, "Isabella is very sorry."

He nodded at me, giving me a sympathetic look. He had been telling me in his thoughts that it was fine, and that she should apologize on her own. But what he didn't realize, was that she would never apologize on her own. I knew my Bella like the back of my hand, and it looks like her stubbornness knew no bounds…even as a child.

Isabella shook her head, looking back at him over my shoulder, as we retreated further and further away, towards the steps leading to our bedroom.

"Am not," she insisted in a hostile tone.

"You will be," I threatened.

* * *

A/N:

_*gasp*_ uh-oh...

Review It Sweets


	26. Her Punishment And The Sniffles

EPOV

I walked up the steps to our bedroom at a slow human pace, trying to ready myself for what was to come. This was it. I had to do it.

Isabella, in her true five year old fashion, had tested me and tested me. And continued to fucking test me. It was clear that she would continue along this route until I put a stop to her behavior and gave her some actual boundaries, making it clear to her what I will and will not put up with.

Sure, I could give her all the rules I wanted, but what would it matter if I never enforced any of them? As I walked, I remembered these past few days and I realized that she had gotten away with so much; racial slurs, rude behavior, refusing to do what she's told, and whining…just to name a few.

I sighed deeply. This was going to suck. My fingertips found the very tips of her hair strands that fell down her back, and I started to nervously twist them around and around.

Okay, now…there are going to be some tears.

_I can probably handle those by now._

And probably some protesting…

_Easy. Just remember to stay firm._

Right.

Tears are easy, I can kiss those away. And being a part-time parent requires a bit of firmness. I can do this.

_Piece of fucking cake._

"Edward?"

Isabella's soft voice interrupted my reverie. I tore my gaze away from the steps and looked at her. When we made eye contact, she gave me an adorable smile and kissed my cheek.

_Shit._

Okay, I was _not_ prepared to battle her sweetness.

_Stay fucking firm, damn it. She is a five year old, Cullen. A five year old, for Christ sakes. You are stronger than that…resist her charms._

Right.

I looked away from her and focused back on my slow steps. "Hmmm?"

"We gonna get to play now?" she asked hopefully.

I just shook my head and continued the walk to our certain doom. Ever since I had to do this with Marie, I had begun to realize the truth in the common phrase parents across the world had used: 'This is going to hurt me, more than it'll hurt you'. Truer fucking words had never been spoken.

"But how come?" she asked.

We were walking into the bedroom now. I glanced over to the bed, allowing myself a second to glare at the spot I had been sitting two days ago with Marie over my lap. I suddenly had a change of heart about that position. I didn't want to sit there, on the edge of the bed again. My eyes drifted up the king size bed to the headboard.

_There._

Okay, with Isabella, I could sit against the headboard with some pillows, allowing the parts of her body that aren't draped over my lap, to lay on the bed beside me, instead of leaving her legs to dangle in mid-air.

_But why should the position matter?_

Maybe I want her fucking comfortable. Maybe I'm a big goddamn softy. Maybe I suck at this parenting crap.

"Because, Isabella…" I trailed off in a subdued but firm tone. I reached back to loosen her hold on my neck and sat her down on the bed. She looked up at me, so I stared back at her trying to keep my 'stern face' in place. After a few seconds of my pointed stare, I sat down against the headboard, in front of her thin form. "We need to deal with your bad behavior," I finished, keeping eye contact.

"But why?" she asked with a questioning gaze. Before I could answer her, she stated matter-of-factly, "Edward, I wanna play," then let her eyes drift over to where her baby doll basinet lay on the floor.

I put my finger to her chin and brought her gaze back to my serious one. When her chocolate eyes locked onto mine, I shook my head. "No," I stated with finality.

She stared at me for a few seconds, just now beginning to recognize my tone and the 'stern face' that she had come to realize I only used when I meant business. Her eyes became worried then, and she brought her thumb to her mouth, obviously getting nervous.

I gently grabbed her wrist and pulled that thumb out of her mouth. "Bedtime," was all I said, then I put her hand back in her lap. All that did was serve to remind me of another rule she had broken frequently in the past few days.

She sniffled and I could start to smell the beginnings of her tears. She was beginning to understand what was going on. And next…oh God, there was that smell of sweet adrenaline assaulting my senses.

_Mmmmm, so fucking delicious…_

I clenched my eyes shut, surprised by my strong reaction to her scent right now. I would definitely need to hunt soon. Very, very soon.

It didn't take long for me to reign back in my control. It seemed to take forever, but in reality it was only about two seconds. Isabella wouldn't have noticed anything was wrong. I looked back at her and noticed that she was sucking on those pink lips.

"Edward?" she asked in a small voice.

_Alright, keep eye contact and keep the voice tone soft, but firm. Firm, but fucking soft. Find the goddamn balance._

"Yes, baby?"

_Okay, that was pretty good._

"Am I in trouble?" she asked with apprehension.

Every other single time she had asked that question, my answer had been 'no'. I could tell that right now, she was hoping with all her might that she would hear my usual response.

_Not this time, sweetheart…_

I sighed, steeling to my resolve. This was for her own good.

I nodded. "Yes."

She gasped. "But why?" she asked. She sounded to small and devastated at the prospect of getting into trouble.

I was puzzled for a second. What did she think was going to happen?

_Um, probably nothing because that is all that has happened so far. She has learned not to take you seriously._

I hated that my internal ramblings were true. I had put this off for too long, and now…not only has her behavior gotten worse over the past few days, but now that a punishment was actually going to be dealt out, she was confused by it.

_Way to fucking go. Awesome parenting skills. Dumbass._

All of those times I had given her a break because the tears had started, or I thought that she had learned her lesson…I was only being a neglectful softy and instead of it helping her, it was going to hurt her in the long run.

_Okay, stop analyzing everything and just fucking do it, already. It's just a spanking. Plain and simple. Over in a few seconds._

That thought comforted me..._over in a few seconds_. Okay, time to get down to business.

"Because, you were rude to Carlisle in his office this morning. You didn't apologize when I told you to. You're also still breaking the rules about whining and your thumb. What are those rules?" I asked her, wanting them to be fresh in her mind before I actually got started.

She wasn't going for her avoidance tactics, anymore. She was going for the guilt angle with those small and salty tears that had just started to slowly fall during my explanation of why she was in trouble.

She sniffled. "B'cuz no whining and I only get my thumb at bedtime," she said earnestly, and wiped her cheeks. "I know my rules, can I get outta trouble now?" she asked hopefully in a slightly shaky voice.

I shook my head. "Isabella, I'm happy that you know your rules, but that just means that you should have been following them. Since you know them so well…" I trailed off suggestively.

She seemed to realize then, that instead of me being proud of her for reciting those simple rules, like she had obviously intended for me to be, I was more upset. Isabella knowing her rules by heart but choosing not to follow them, had just cemented my resolve even more. And with that realization, came more tears.

"But your daddy was mean to me…" she said desperately.

I was quick to respond. "He was not, and don't lie to me about that, young lady. Lying gets you into more trouble, Isabella. What is your rule about lying?" I asked.

She sniffled and wiped her right eye with a fist. "No lying…" she whimpered.

"And are you lying?" I prodded gently.

She nodded then stopped holding back her cries. "I'm sorry," she cried, her watery gaze boring a hole into my determined one.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. This was truly a pitiful, heartbreaking sight before me. "You need to say that to Carlisle when we're through," I reminded her.

She sniffled again and her breath hitched. "But I can tell him now," she squeaked.

I shook my head sadly and slowly crooked my finger at her. "C'mere…"

She shook her head frantically, not moving from her spot in front of me. "Edward, nooo…" she cried, then hiccupped.

I sighed, keeping my firm façade going. I pointed out, "See, we have to work on that too, angel…you need to start doing as your told. Do you understand?"

She wiped her left eye and nodded, "Yah-huh…Edward, I'll be good," she told me through pleading, watery eyes.

"I know you will," I assured her, pretty damn sure that she wouldn't misbehave again once I was through making my point.

I swallowed back the venom at her enticing adrenaline and breathed in her lovely scent, letting the burn in my throat relax me. I looked at her sitting before me, all teary-eyed and distressed. I took in her thin, fragile form. She was a lot smaller than me. Her weight drop while I was away had really emphasized her petiteness. At 96 pounds, I could envelop her tiny waist with both of my large hands, letting my thumbs barely touch, with about an inch of space in between them. Her height wasn't much better, for she came up to just below my shoulder. After a second of staring at her ironically small form, I spoke again.

"Let's try this again," I said with determination. "Come here, baby…" I told her, keeping my tone smooth and soft.

She only cried and gave me a pleading look as she started to suck on her pretty lips, switching quickly from bottom to top, and back again.

When she didn't immediately comply, I asked, "Do you really want me to have to put you over my lap? It will be so much better for you, baby, if you cooperate and do as your told," I informed her. "You said that you could follow your rules, like a big girl…" I trailed off.

She nodded.

"So then do it," I concluded. "Come. Here," my tone ringing with finality now.

She cried and desperately tried again. "Edwaaaard, don't want a spankin," she exclaimed with a hiccup and a sniffle.

"Yes, well…maybe you'll be a good girl from now on," I suggested softly, understanding her dilemma. "Hmm?" I asked with raised eyebrows.

She nodded, but didn't make a move towards me, so I reached out for her. I was ready for this to be fucking over with. I was quick with my movements, and before she could protest again, her position had changed. Her stomach and chest were now laying on my lap, with her legs stretched out on the bed to my right.

As soon as she realized her position, she quickly turned on her side, facing my body and did her best to curl into a ball, tucking both her hands to her chest, which only served to actually curve her body around my midsection. I was fine with this new position, so I didn't protest. She fisted a handful of my shirt and burrowed her face into my hip, much like Marie had done.

I kept my hands at my sides as she cried out, "But, I'm sorry!" her voice muffled by the cotton fabric of my shirt.

"I know," I assured her gently. "And you're going to tell Carlisle that too…aren't you, baby girl?"

She nodded but didn't speak again while her cried. I really did feel sorry for her. I mean, I hadn't even started yet, and she was getting all worked up. I guess for kids of a young age, the anticipation is worse than the actual punishment. At least, that is what she is conveying to me right now.

I lifted my right hand a bit, noticing how her new position caused her bottom to be by my other hip, instead of my knee. I decided five was a good number. She was five years old, after all, right? Yes…five would be her number. That would always be the number I would use if and when she found herself over my lap in the future.

I clenched my eyes shut and breathed in again, feeling that relaxing burn of my throat. "Isabella, after this, I want you to apologize to Carlisle for your rude behavior, and you need to follow your rules from now on," I informed her while running a hand roughly through my hair. "Alright?" I hedged quietly.

"Ed-ward…sorry," she whimpered out, before my right hand made contact.

She gasped. "Owwwie," her voice muffled into my shirt as my hand came down a second time.

"Edward, owwie…stop," she sobbed out with a hiccup.

_Jesus fucking Christ. How about only two swats…_

No. Goddamn it, I really need to stick to a decision with her for once. I spanked her again, making sure to keep up the same exact pressure for each one. It was barely a flick of my wrist really, but I knew it would be painful to her delicate flesh. That was my intention, after all. She squirmed in my lap then, and reached a quick hand behind her back in an effort to protect herself.

I gently grabbed her wrist and moved the hand out of my way. I kept a hold of it in my own, preventing her from doing that again. It would really hurt her hand if I smacked it instead, by accident.

"No, Isabella," I scolded her. "You keep your hands out of my way," I said before landing a particularly sharp swat once my target was clear again.

She screamed then sobbed out, "But it hurrrrts…Ed-ward, owwie."

_Fucking hell. Just one more..._

I gritted my teeth, before relaxing my jaw to speak again. "It's supposed to, sweetheart," I responded before I half-heartedly landed the final blow.

Another sob tore through her throat, causing her small body to shake with the force of it.

_Well, thank the fucking lord that's finally over._

As she lay curled up on my lap for ten more seconds, I realized that she hadn't yet come to the realization that I was done. It was over. She wasn't in trouble anymore.

I carefully gripped her under her shoulders and lifted her curled body to the left a bit, straightening her out before me, then brought her to my chest. The grip she had on my shirt was finally released as she tried to acclimate to her new position. She straddled my hips in our upright position, placing a knee on either side of me. Her arms wrapped tightly around my neck and she pressed her face into my shoulder, continuing to cry.

I hugged her to me and kissed the hot skin on her temple. Her face was flushed due to her exertions of crying so much. After a few seconds, I lifted her head from my shoulder and cupped her beautiful face in my hands. My concerned gaze met hers as I softly grazed my thumbs over her rosy cheeks, wiping those sad tears away. When most of the tears were gone, I kissed her runny, little button nose. Her sweet, warm breath fanned across my face as she continued to cry and whimper pitifully.

_Why does this part of trying to parent her suck so fucking much?_

I felt like crying too, but that wasn't possible…so, instead I breathed out a sigh of relief, fanning my cool breath over that overheated skin on her face. I knew that the pleasant scent of venom on my breath would calm her. So I did it again. And again, letting it just gently wash over her face. I was relieved knowing that it was over, and that I had survived her tears along with my guilt, always keeping in mind that this was for the best. The results of it could only be positive, right?

I saw when she began sucking on that bottom lip. I felt her right arm loosen from around my neck, and when she reached it behind herself, I caught her wrist and silently shook my head at her. She would not be allowed to rub the hurt out just yet. I really, really, _really_ needed this spanking to be a lasting memory in her mind, in hopes that she would remember how much it hurt, and how much it sucked, and then she would do her best to keep this from happening again, at all costs.

Her brow furrowed at me as I kept a hold of her wrist.

She hiccupped. "Hurts," she told me in a broken voice, then sniffled. "My owwie..."

I nodded and looked back into her watery chocolate eyes. I spoke softly, "I know, baby."

I let go of her wrist, then moved my hands down her back slowly, and gently cupped her sore, jean-clad bottom, feeling the heat radiating off of her skin. I kept my hands still and firmly in place, knowing that while this prevented her own hands from rubbing the hurt away, my cool touch could also inadvertently help relieve some of her soreness.

I kissed her damp cheek as she cried. "Shhh…" I whispered in her ear then began a very subtle slow rock in our seated position. I knew the rocking motion would help pacify her.

She laid her head back down on my shoulder and cried for a little while longer. She had quieted down significantly though, in the past few minutes, with the help of my sweet, venom breath and cool hands.

After a minute, she spoke into the silence of the room. "Edward?" she said, her mouth right by my ear.

"Hmm?"

"You wanna keep me?" she croaked out softly.

"Always baby girl," I whispered in her ear.

"Even if I'm mad and do mad things?" she asked weakly.

"Always, no matter what. No 'mad thing' you could do would ever change my mind, sweetheart," I assured her, remembering when I had to reassure Marie of the same thing after she had gotten into some trouble.

She sniffled. "But…you like your daddy more than me?"

"No, I love you. More than anything, baby girl. You are mine," I reminded her.

"You gonna let your daddy be mean to me?" she asked, clearly still worried about her beliefs on people with blonde hair.

"Never," I told her with conviction. I sighed and kissed hair, "Isabella I will never let anyone hurt you or be mean to you," I reassured her.

"Edward?"

"Yes, baby…" I trailed off, staring to lightly run my fingers along her back.

I was spelling out 'I love you' on her spine with a single, cool digit when she finally responded.

"Sorry…"

"I know," I assured quickly.

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"I can be a good girl," she hedged lightly.

"You _are_ a good girl, Isabella," I assured her. "Sometimes, good girls just mess up…and sometimes they do bad things," I tried to explain.

"How come?" she asked.

I shrugged lightly. "Dunno, angel…it's all apart of learning what is good and what is bad. But don't worry, I'll always be here to teach you the differences between the good stuff and the bad stuff. Because I love you. And I always will," I soothed her.

My fingertips had reached her shoulder when she spoke again. "Edward?"

"Yes?"

"Sometimes your daddy wants me to tell him stuff 'bout my daddy that I don't wanna. What do I say if I don't wanna?" she asked curiously in her small voice.

"Just tell him, sweetheart. It's really easy, you know…just say 'I don't want to talk about it,' and he should leave it alone," I informed her.

She sniffled and yawned. Noticing that she was ready for yet _another_ nap, I brought the comforter around us, bundling her up as I continued the subtle rocking motion. Her grip around my neck stayed tight as her breathing began to slow and deepen.

"Edward?" she mumbled sleepily.

"Yes, baby?"

"Love you…" she whispered.

I smiled. "Love you too, angel."

_Son, you need to hunt_ Carlisle suddenly thought to me.

Shit, that's right.

I held Isabella tighter to me, knowing that I probably wouldn't be here when she woke up. I stuck my nose in her hair and breathed in deeply, recognizing the excessive sharp burn in my throat.

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"Sorry to your daddy…"

_Oh yeah._

"_You_ need to tell him, baby," I told her with a kiss to her cheek.

"Carlisle," I called for him at vampire frequency, knowing that this had to be handled now because she was drifting quickly.

A few seconds later, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," I said, more so for Isabella's sake than Carlisle's.

Carlisle slowly walked into the room and Isabella turned her head towards him, keeping it pressed onto my shoulder. She looked up at him through the corner of her bleary eyes.

"Hello, Isabella," he greeted in his bedside manner.

She sniffled. "Sorry…" she said in a weak, tired voice.

"That's okay, dear. All water under the bridge, as they say," he told her conversationally.

She fractionally nodded her head against my shoulder. "Kay g'night," she mumbled and stuck her thumb in her mouth.

I nodded at him then spoke in our frequency, "I'll be down in a minute."

He left the room as I stuck my nose into Isabella's long silky locks, enjoying her scent entirely too much. Damn...I would miss her.

_It's just a couple of hours..._

Right, a couple of hours, and then I wouldn't have to leave to hunt again for another four or five days.

I would just do as I had done this last time. I was in a hurry to get back to my Bella because of her odd behavior, so I had rushed through hunting, gluttoning myself on animal's blood. Sounds like a plan.

"Mine..." Isabella whispered out as she slipped over the brink of unconciousness.

I moved our position then. I was quick with my movements, so I wouldn't jostle her awake. Once I had her rolled over onto her side, I made sure to tuck the blanket around her ridiculously small form before gently extracting that thumb from her mouth. She really needed to gain some weight...she was almost too fragile. I kissed her forehead, then quietly made my way back downstairs.

In the front room, I was met with the concerned faces of six vampires. Before they could voice their questions, I rolled my eyes and stated with finality, "She's fine."

I knew how to handle Isabella and I would never actually hurt my Bella. Five swats was nothing, and they all knew it. Isabella was just being dramatic with her cries, because that's just what five year olds do, apparently. She had worked herself up to sniffles and hiccups before I had even touched her.

They seemed placated because they all went back to their various activities. Alice and Esme came up to my side as I was slipping my hiking boots on.

I looked to my mother. "I'm going to head out. I'm staying close though, so I should be back here by her dinner time. When she wakes up, make sure she eats a little bit, she skipped lunch."

Esme nodded. "Of course, dear. Are you sure the child is alright?" she asked with worried eyes.

I smiled lightly. "Yes, she is fine. We should see an improvement in her behavior and she apologized to Carlisle."

She smiled. "Yes, she did," Esme said with a nod. "When she wakes, I'll give her a yogurt for a snack before dinner."

"That'll work," I nodded, then turned to Alice.

I smiled at her and she grinned back. A big, goofy grin. "Guess what, Alice..."

"I know!" she squeaked with a giggle. "I'm Isabella's playmate and Marie's bestie and Bella's best friend. I fucking rock!"

I smiled, knowing that I was leaving my girl in good hands. "Please keep her company while I'm gone..." I pleaded, feeling really reluctant to leave, but I knew it was a necessity.

"Oh, I know! We're going to have so much fun," she said with a wistful smile. She gave a little gasp, then started, "There's dress-up to play, and manicures to be had, and music to dance to, and a trampoline to jump on, and a swing to-"

"I get it, Alice," I told her, amused with her excitement at being able to spend time with her best friend again.

I opened the door then, and stepped out onto the front porch. I turned back around to kiss her cheek, "I'll be back soon."

She winked. "See ya, bro!" she said, then closed the door behind me.

I looked at my watch...just after 2pm. My girl would eat dinner around six. That gave me four hours. I smiled, knowing that was plenty of time.

I had just drained three deers and decided to take a quick break, before finding a bear to finish off my meal. I walked back into the thicket of the trees and sat down on the forest floor, leaning up against the bark of a thick tree trunk. I reached into the zipped up pocket of my jacket that I had left on the ground before my hunt, and pulled out my compact silver cell phone. I hit the button to power it on and waited until it showed a strong signal so that I could call home. I missed my Bella. I missed her terribly.

_*RING*_

I sighed.

_*RING*_

"Hey!" Alice's voice exclaimed over the line.

"How is she?" I asked, not quite hiding the anxiety and longing in my voice.

"She's alright, I guess. Marie and I had fun. We played on Bella's Nintendo DS for a while and then we jumped around on that huge freakin trampoline, and then she let me put her hair up, and then... oh yeah!" she squeaked suddenly. "Marie gave me that friendship bracelet! I'm wearing it right now. Oh Edward, it's so pretty..." she trailed off sweetly.

I smiled, relaxing with the image of Marie and Alice getting along.

Breathing a sigh of relief, I asked, "Did she eat her yogurt?"

"Yes, and we found out that she likes the flavor strawberry and that peach is apparently, trash-worthy."

I chuckled. "Alright...can I talk to her?"

"Um..."

"What?" I asked quickly, my anxiety returning.

"Nothing. It's just that Marie's not around anymore, Edward."

"Bella?"

"Nope."

"Ohh...no. How is she, Alice?"

Alice was quiet on the line for a few seconds.

"Alice?"

I heard her sigh. "She's sad."

"Let me talk to her. Put her on the phone," I practically demanded.

"Alright, alright. Hold your horses...jeez."

A few seconds later, I heard through the line that Alice was knocking on a door. Then I heard the distinct squeak of a door being opened.

"Hey..." Alice's voice trailed off softly. "Your Edward wants to talk to you," I heard Alice say.

Eight fucking seconds later...

"Here she is, Edward," I heard Alice tell me, before there was some shuffling over the phone.

Then I heard a delicate little sniffle.

"Isabella?" I hedged softly.

"Edward, I _miss_ you," her soft, child-like voice rang clear in my ear.

I sighed and closed my eyes at her sweet voice. "I know, sweetheart. I miss you too."

"When you comin' back?"

"In a little bit."

I heard a sniffle and a rushed sigh. My chest clenched in anxiety at the sound of it.

"Baby, don't cry..."

"But Edward, how come you left and I couldn't go with you?" she asked, clearly upset.

"You were sleeping, baby girl. I had some stuff that I had to do..." I trailed off.

"You mad at me?" she whispered.

"No. Isabella, no. I'm not mad. I promise," I quickly reassured her.

"But I wanted to come witchyou..."

"You were sleeping, baby," I softly reminded her.

She sniffled again. "B-but your daddy said that you had'ta go get somethin to eat b'cuz you were hungry."

"Mm-hmmm..."

"But _*sniffle*_ he...he's lying to me b'cuz it don't take that long to go to Mcdonalds to get a happy meal," she told me in a pitifully small voice.

I smiled at her assumption that I would need a happy meal from McDonalds.

_Oh, if it were only that easy..._

"I'll be home soon, sweetheart," I assured her.

She coughed. I immediately worried that she could be getting sick, but banished that thought. It was just a little cough.

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

"My baby dolly is sick..." she told me in a worried tone.

"I'm sure she'll be fine, baby. You're a good mommy, just make sure she has a blanket wrapped around her and she'll get better soon."

"Kay," she said, then cleared her throat. "Edward?"

"Yeah?"

"I wanna cuddle with you."

"We can as soon as I get back, Isabella."

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"I love you," she said, then sniffled.

"I love you too, sweetheart. You're mine."

"You're mine, too."

"Mm-hmm..."

"Edward?" she sniffled. Again.

"Yeah, baby?"

"I need a tissue," she squeaked, then sneezed.

"Go get one baby," I told her.

"Don't know where they are. Gotta use potty paper?" she asked and coughed again.

_Maybe she is getting sick..._

"You can, but the tissues should be in a shelf next to the linen closet."

She was silent for a second, then asked. "Where?"

I sighed and ran my hand through my hair, realizing that she didn't really know her way around the house yet. "Ask Esme, baby..." I suggested.

"Your mommy?"

"Yes."

She sniffled. "Kay. Edward?"

"Yeah?"

"Next time, can I come with you?" she asked hopefully.

"We'll see, baby," I placated her.

"Edward?"

"Yes, what is it baby?"

"Can I go play outside?"

"Yes, you can," I assured her.

She coughed again and it worried me. "Isabella?"

"Hmm..." she sniffled.

"Do you feel okay, baby?"

"Feelin ucky," she whispered and coughed again. "Need a tissue..."

The prospect of her being sick made me want to hurry up and finish so that I could get back home to her as soon as possible.

"Go get one, sweetheart. I'm going to hang up so that I can finish doing what I need to do, and then I'll be home soon, alright?"

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"You hangin up now?"

I nodded, then remembered that she couldn't see me. "Yes, baby..."

"But *sniffle* I _miss_ you."

"I know, and I miss you too. But you know what?"

"Huh..."

"The sooner we hang up, the sooner I can come back home and we can cuddle."

"Cuddle up and watch a funny movie?" she asked hopefully with yet another sniffle.

"Yes, sweetheart."

"Kay."

"Okay, it's time to say goodbye now."

"Kay."

"Okay, goodbye Isabella. I'll be home soon. I love you."

"Love you, Edward. Good bye-bye."

I flipped my phone closed and stuck it back in my jacket pocket, zipping it closed for safe keeping. As soon as I was back on my feet, I let my instincts take over. I crouched low and inhaled the cool, damp air around me. Picking up the scent of elk to my left, I took off in that direction, intent on draining it and anything else in my path as quickly as possible. I needed to hurry.

My little angel needed me.

I had finished up quickly, and had been running back to my house for the past twenty minutes. Soon I was approaching the familiar river, and took the leap to the other side, then slowed my pace as I neared my home's back yard.

I could hear my Bella's heartbeat, but she wasn't outside playing on her trampoline or swing. Before I could allow myself to breath in her scent, in an attempt to track her location, I heard her sweet voice. My eyes immediately shot up in the direction of her humming, and soon I had zeroed in a a thin leg with creamy white skin, dangling off the side of a tree branch.

_Goddamn it, Alice. I ask you to do ONE fucking thing..._

It was then that I noticed Alice, Emmett and Carlisle standing at the back door with their eyes zeroed in on the same thing I had my intent focus on.

Isabella. Up in a fucking tree.

The sight angered me and filled me with that wretched anxiety.

She was sitting on a rather large, thick branch, more than capable of holding her slight weight, and she had her back against the trunk with a small backpack set down behind her, between her back and the tree trunk. She was leaning forward a bit with a colored pencil in her right hand. She hadn't noticed me here yet, and kept up her light humming. Soon, her gaze shifted to something in front of her before shifting back down at her paper, and that's when I noticed that she was sketching the approaching sunset. The look on her face was serene, as her hand trailed dutifully across the paper pad in front of her.

_Well, okay...she can stay up there and draw if she wants. For just a little while. Only until she done with her picture. But damn it, then it's time to come back down_ I decided with finality.

I looked back at my sister noticing her apologies flowing through her thoughts into my head. I simply waved her off. Isabella looked fine to me.

Carlisle and Emmett kept there intent stare on her, clearly ready to catch her if she fell. I saw in Emmett's thoughts how she had insisted and fought for them to leave her alone so that she could find herself a tree. She stated that she wanted to draw. They finally relented, but made sure that she got up there safely, before going back inside to give her some privacy.

Isabella sniffled, before she began to sing softly while continuing her picture...

If all the flowers faded away  
And if all the storm clouds decided to stay  
Then you would find me  
Each hour, the same  
She is tomorrow and I am today  
And if right is leaving, I'd rather be wrong  
She is the sunlight and the sun is gone  
If loving her is heartache for me  
And if holding her means that I have to bleed  
Then I am the martyr and love is to blame  
She is the healing and I am the pain  
She lives in a daydream where I don't belong  
She is the sunlight and the sun is gone  
Cuz if right is leaving, I'd rather be wrong  
Bella is the sunlight and the sun is gone...

"Isabella..."

She startled a bit and tore her gaze away from her picture.

She looked over to me and coughed, then smiled brightly. "My Edward!"

I smiled back, but then noticed the evening's cool breeze coming in. "Baby, what are you doing up there? And without a jacket on? You're going to get sick, sweetheart."

"I'm drawin..." she trailed off with a delicate shrug, then closed her book and reached behind her for her bag. "Gotta put my stuff away, Edward," she told me.

It only took her a few seconds to pack up her bag with her sketch pad a pack of colored pencils. When she stood on the branch, my instincts went on high alert.

"Isabella, _no_."

She looked down at me, where I stood on the ground. "No, what?" she asked nonchalantly.

"Sit back down, I'll come-"

But she had already crouched down and slid off of that branch onto the one below her, while gripping the bark of the branch she had been sitting on. Once her toes touched down onto the new branch, she let go of the one above her.

"Edward?" she said, while walking along the new branch towards the tree trunk.

"Isabella, sit down," I demanded.

"Why?" she asked with a curious gaze my way.

"Because I said so."

"But I want down..." she said in a slightly whiny tone.

"I'll get you down."

She shook her head. "I can do it, I'm a big girl," she stated proudly.

"Isabella, sit."

"Huh-uh Edward, you sit," she said with a smile, then grabbed onto a thin branch in front of her.

She began dangling off of that branch and I was about to rush up the tree and get her, but she let her grip go. She fell a short distance through the air and landed into an instinctual crouch onto the ground with a soft thud right in front of me.

When she stood back up, she wrapped her arms around my waist and breathed out, "Missed you..."

I enveloped her in my arms, and breathed in her scent. I stuck my nose in her soft hair, "I missed you too, baby girl."

While I hugged her to me, I remembered my Bella's words of caution: _Isabella is very flexible. She likes to climb on anything and everything. She's quite the little escape artist._

Yes...I could definitely see that.

Isabella coughed and I loosened my grip on her. I held her away from me at arms length, keeping my grip on her shoulders.

"Baby, do you feel okay?" I asked.

Her face fell and she shook her head sadly. "Me and my baby dolly feel ucky, Edward," she informed me.

I nodded, "Let's go inside. You shouldn't be out here without a jacket on," I said firmly.

Once we were inside, Isabella went straight for the tissue box on the kitchen counter. While she blew her nose, Esme made Isabella's dinner plate. Tonight she was having tacos and rice. Esme was paying special attention not to put any tomatos on Isabella's tacos. It was confusing her a bit because my Bella likes tomatos a lot, but Isabella seemed to despise them. It was all very interesting. Not only were all three of my girl's interests completely different from eachother, but their tastebuds reacted differently from one another, too.

_So fucking fascinating._

I had gone upstairs to get Isabella's micro-plush 'little angel' blanket for her, because she had stated that she was cold. When Isabella was seated at the dinner table, wearing her pink blanket like a cape and happily chewing on her food, Emmett decided to join us.

"Hey shorty," he greeted her.

She immediately looked to me. I wasn't sure what she wanted me to do, so I just gave her a reassuring nod, and surprisingly, she turned right back to Emmett and smiled.

"Hi," she said shyly.

"You mind if I play on your trampoline for a while, kid?" he asked excitedly.

She shook her head delicately. "Huh-uh, you can play on my jump-a-lene if you want..." she said, then grabbed her Hi-C juice box, taking a drink from it.

He gave her a big grin. "Thanks!"

She nodded a little bit and blushed. He got up from the table then, and jogged towards the back doors.

Him and Isabella would get along just fine. They were both just big kids at heart.

"Isabella, why did you look to me when Emmett said 'hi' to you?" I asked.

"B'cuz he's a man," Isabella stated matter-of-factly and sniffled.

"Mm-hmmm..." I trailed off, already knowing this.

She just looked up and nodded along with my hummed agreement.

"Why does that matter though, baby?" I said, clarifying my question for her.

"B'cuz I belong to you. If you're by me, then I can't talk to a man without you sayin' it's okay first."

I just stared at her.

_What?_

"Won't I get in trouble...?" she hedged with a slight cough.

I shook my head slowly. "No, baby...you won't be in trouble."

"Does he want to fuck me?"

"No," I growled out before I could stop myself.

She furrowed her brow, like she didn't believe me, but nodded hesitantly anyway.

"Edward?" she said, turning her attention back towards her plate.

I sighed and reigned in my anger and her previous question.

_Please don't let it be a fucked up question. Please don't let it be a fucked up question. Please don't let it be a fucked up question..._

"Hmm?"

She picked up her fork. "Marie is mad..." she said quietly.

"Why's that sweetheart?" I asked, intrigued.

"B'cuz we don't feel good," she said sadly with a little shake of her head.

"Oh..." I nodded.

_Yes, Marie avoids illnesses..._

"She was playin' with Ali and then started to not feel good no more. So, even tho' it's Bella's turn, she wanted me to come out and play, b'cuz Bella won't," she informed me, then scooped a forkful of rice into her mouth.

"Why won't Bella come out, baby?" I asked, and I noticed that we had Carlisle full attention from the other room.

She shrugged delicately. "Can't get her to..."

"What do you mean, baby? You can't get her to _what_?" I asked, my anxiety beginning to spike, but I was trying desperately not to show it.

She swallowed. "Come back out." She sniffled, then added, "She's sad."

"Why is she sad?"

"B'cuz of daddy."

* * *

A/N:

Ok for those of you who guessed correctly on how Edward would handle Isabella's behavior from the last chapter...

Yay. For. You. You deserve a cookie.

Now that you've read it, do you think he made the right decision? Do you think he handled it well?

The song that Isabella sings while drawing in her tree is Trading Yesterday: She Is the Sunlight. Go to YouTube and listen, or give it a download. It's on the Personality soundtrack that I made on the myspace page for this story, and it's a really pretty song. I could totally see it being sung by a child. Fucking Adorable. Plus, it greatly describes Isabella's feelings of love and responsibility for Bella.

And as always darling, if you read it then REVIEW it. ~** Pretty Please **~


	27. Innocent Deceit

EPOV

"So she won't come back out because she's sad?" I asked, trying to understand exactly what Isabella was implying.

She nodded. "Yah-huh, your daddy made her talk about the bad stuff, Edward. It made me mad."

"That's why you were so mad, baby? Because Bella was sad?"

She nodded again and grabbed her juice box for another drink.

So, Isabella's protective instincts over Bella had kicked in and that's why she had lashed out at Carlisle in his office. Her words hadn't been prejudice towards him, or his hair, per the usual. She had just said 'leave us the fuck alone' in a cold manner. She wasn't necessarily being hostile…just protective. And that would also mean that she didn't want to apologize when I told her to, because she felt that she was justified in her actions…simply because she was only 'protecting' my Bella.

_Fucking hell, this is confusing._

So…was it right then, that I spanked her?

_Yes. Her behavior this morning was fucking unacceptable._

But, she was only following her instinctual need to protect Bella. I can certainly relate to that, because I have the same needs.

_But the way she went about it was just all wrong…_

Just like when Marie had become hostile in gym class this past Tuesday, because she was 'protecting' Bella. It ended up getting Bella expelled from school. And I had promised my Bella that I would keep the girls in line…and I will.

So yes, it was right…besides, that punishment was about a lot more than just her refusal to apologize.

"When will Bella come back around, sweetheart?"

She shrugged. "Dunno."

"Okay…" I trailed off.

I didn't like that. I missed my Bella. If this was going to happen after every single therapy session, then this therapy business and I were going to have a fucking problem.

She sniffled. "Edward?"

"Yes, baby?"

She scrunched up her little button nose. "Feel ucky…" she coughed.

My gaze on her became concerned. "I know, baby."

Jasper walked through the door then, just as Isabella was finishing up her dinner. Alice saw that my girl would be feeling under the weather with a little cold for the next forty-eight hours, or so. Knowing that her ill feelings would affect him, Jasper had gone out to the convenient store here in town, and gotten my Bella some Tylenol Cold medicine with a bag of cough drops and a few extra boxes of tissues.

Jasper came into the dining room and handed me the shopping bag full of Isabella's cold/flu relief. Isabella watched as I took out a box of Puffs tissues and tore the cardboard top off. I handed it to her and she immediately attacked it, grabbing a tissues and quickly sneezing into it.

While she took care of her runny nose, I took the small bottle of Tylenol cold medicine out of the bag. I read the directions and filled the medicine cup that was on top of the cap with the right dosage, then slid the small plastic cup over to Isabella.

She eyed it with distaste.

"Take your medicine, baby."

She shook her head.

"Yes."

She shook her head again.

I sighed. "Take it, Isabella. It'll make you feel better."

She looked away from the medicine cup then, and turned her gaze to me. "But what if it's ucky?" she asked with apprehension.

I nodded, understanding her dilemma. "Okay, so then you just drink some of your juice after you take the medicine. It's better to taste something that's ucky for a couple of seconds, than to _feel_ ucky for a long time, baby girl," I reasoned.

"Now, take your medicine," I insisted.

She furrowed her brow. "Don't wanna…" she whined.

I gave her my 'stern face'. "Stop whining and do as your told, Isabella."

With that, I looked away from her and back into the bag, not waiting to see her reaction. If she didn't want a repeat of this morning, then she would start following her simple rules. I guess this was a test, to see if what I had done this morning had actually sunk in.

_So…did that wretched spanking actually work?_

I grabbed the bag of Halls honey-lemon cough drops and opened it for her, hoping for her cooperation in this matter. It would be horrible if this morning's punishment wasn't enough to get my message across. I wasn't sure if I was ready for a repeat so soon.

When I looked back to Isabella, she had the small cup of medicine pressed to her lips and was tilting it back for her to swallow with a grimace on her face. I guess it was 'ucky', after all.

I smiled reassuringly at her, glad that she was cooperating. "Here, baby." I handed her a cough drop. "Suck on this candy, it'll help your throat feel better."

She blew her nose again and picked the cough drop up off the table. After untwisting it from it's paper wrapper, she popped it in her mouth then rubbed her right eye with a fist. She played with the drop on her tongue and I could hear it clicking against her teeth.

"Edward?"

"Hmmm?"

"I wanna cuddle with you," she said, looking at me longingly.

I nodded. "Okay, you wanna go upstairs and pick out a movie, angel?"

She shook her head. "Can we go lay down on my jump-a-lene and watch all the pretty stars?" she asked hopefully.

I liked the sound of that, but would it be alright for her to be outside right now?

"You're sick, baby…"

"I can put my jacket on and bring my tissues out with us," she said, trying to placate me.

I nodded reluctantly. "Okay...go get your jacket, baby girl."

Isabella went upstairs while I took her plate to the kitchen sink and threw away her empty juice box. I put her cold medicine and cough drops in the kitchen cabinet, then grabbed the newly opened box of tissues off the table, ready to go out to the backyard.

When Isabella came back down, she had a look of frustration on her face.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?"

She huffed. "Edward?"

"Yes?"

"Can't get it zipp'ded up," she whined with a squeak at the end of her complaint, then sniffled.

I smiled at all her squeaky snifflyness.

_Fucking adorable._

"C'mere…"

She walked over to me and stopped when she was only inches away. With a kiss to her forehead, I noted that she didn't have a fever before I had that jacket all zipped up for her. She smiled at me in appreciation, then turned on her heel to go out the back doors. I followed her outside and we headed over to the trampoline in the middle of the yard.

Emmett was out there, sitting on the ledge of it. He had been seeing how high he could jump when he heard our conversation at the dinner table. He was just getting off of the trampoline now so that we could use it.

Emmett quirked his eyebrow at me. _You're going to stargaze and cuddle on this thing? Dude, what the hell is wrong with you? JUMP on it. Little Isabella had the right idea when she thought of this thing. It's fucking awesome_ he thought to me.

I just rolled my eyes and shook my head at him. If Isabella wanted to lay on it, instead of jump, then that's what we were going to do. She didn't feel good…my little angel could have anything she wanted.

Once we were on the trampoline, I layed down on the weird, black stretchy material while Isabella sat down beside me. At 7:30 in the evening, the night had fallen fairly quickly. It was very dark out here, with the town so far away and no streetlights around. We were surrounded by the forest and a river nearby. Millions of silver and gold stars shone brightly in the sky, and I could see them clearly with my hyper-alert vampire vision. It was very peaceful, but I worried about Isabella being afraid of the dark. I smiled, knowing that I could protect her from any of the 'dark scary monsters' that her imagination could conjure up.

I reached my arm out beside me, and lightly ran my fingers along the top of her knee. She looked away from the sky, and turned her gaze down to me.

She smiled. "Edward?"

"Yes, baby?"

"How many stars are up in the big sky?" she asked as she laid back and snuggled into my side.

She kissed my cheek, then put her head on it's spot in the crook of my shoulder.I wrapped my arm around her small frame and held her tightly to me.

"Millions and millions, baby girl."

"Millions?" she asked curiously.

"And millions…" I trailed off.

"Is Never Never Land up there?" she asked while pointing a finger up above us towards the velvet sky.

"Mm-hmm," I hummed with a slight nod.

"Wow…" she whispered.

"Bella!" Jacob's voice came from the edge of the woods.

_Damn dog._

I had heard his thoughts from a few miles away about five minutes ago. He had been debating whether or not to show up here tonight, without a fucking phone call first, but then finally relented and traveled the rest of the way to my home.

I knew this was going to be complicated. Even though Jacob knew about Marie, I was absolutely positive that he knew nothing of my little girl.

Isabella stayed laying in my arms, but her brow furrowed at Bella's name being called. When Jacob got closer and yelled her name again, Isabella sat up. I sat up along with her and kept my arm around her waist. I kissed her hair as Jacob got closer, not really sure if I was even still dealing with Isabella anymore, or if Marie had come around to see her friend. Or, if Bella had come back into awareness at her name being called out. Loudly.

Jacob took in his surroundings, then set his gaze upon us.

I glared at him. He ignored it.

"Wow…awesome trampoline, Bells. When were you going to invite me over to jump on it? And you got a basketball setup too? Fucking sweet! Ohhh, let's get on the tire swing and-"

"What do you want with Bella?" her child-like voice asked.

Jacob stopped mid-sentence and stared at her, awe-struck. He completely ignored the hard look I was giving him as he set his eyes on the beauty beside me.

"Marie? What's with your voice?"

She shook her head before cocking it to the side a little. "Answer the fucking question."

"Um…Bells and me are friends."

She pressed her body closer to mine as he began to walk forward, coming closer to us.

"Jacob, stop," I demanded in a clipped voice.

He did and looked at me, questioning in his mind what I had done to his Bella.

I rolled my eyes. "This isn't who you think it is, and you're making her nervous. Go home, Jacob."

"Who is it?" he demanded.

_None of your fucking business. And she is **mine**, goddamn it._

"Go. Home." I repeated myself.

But Jacob didn't know how to listen. He kept walking towards us until he was at the edge of the trampoline. He reached out a hand to Isabella and I hissed in a breath before growling lowly in my chest.

_Don't you touch her, she is mine._

Isabella sniffled and looked to me questioningly, no doubt because of the low rumble in my chest at the moment. A few seconds later, she turned her eyes back to Jacob, narrowing them into a cold glare.

"Bells?" he hedged.

"No," she said quietly while letting the hand in her lap slowly curl into a fist.

I saw it and squeezed her waist lightly, silently telling her that I would handle it. Seeing her fist and glare combined, set in the realization that she had the same tendencies as Marie. I had to get Jacob to leave. Now.

"Who?" he asked.

"None of your fucking business," I snapped. "I know about your dealings with Marie and Quil. You'll be lucky if you ever see her again after that bullshit. You are either extremely stupid or have a death wish showing up here unannounced. I should snap your mangy neck for risking my Bella's life like that. You are goddamn lucky that she didn't get a criminal record with prison time while I was away. Now, be a good little bitch and put your tail between your legs while your proceed to get the fuck off my property, mutt."

He glared, then shot back, "Fuck you, bloodsucker. That was Marie's decision and I can see her any time I damn well please. She asked me to come over," Jacob stated.

"Marie said that you need to go," Isabella piped in with her soft voice just before I hissed out, "Fuck off, she is _mine_."

Jacob ignored me and turned his attention back to my little girl. "What's your name?"

She coughed and furrowed her brow in question. "Why?"

"Just wanna know…"

She sniffled. "My Edward doesn't like you and Marie said that you gotta go. So go," she stated matter-of-factly.

"Where's Marie? I wanna see her."

Isabella pursed her lips as anger briefly flashed in her eyes, hardening her glare. "Too. Fucking. Bad. This is my time. Go," she finished with a slight, but unique growl all her own.

_Woah…_

"Where's Bella?"

"Hiding. Go."

"Marie asked me to come over, so…"

"Marie is tellin' you that you gotta go. Go," she insisted.

"Well-"

Isabella turned to me. She pouted out that bottom lip and pointed to Jacob. "He won't leave me alone…" she whined, clearly trying to 'tell on him'.

I smirked at her.

_That's my girl._

"Leave, Jacob," I demanded while keeping a firm grip on Isabella.

Carlisle stepped out onto the porch then, followed by Emmett and Jasper.

"Jacob, it's nice to see you again," Carlisle greeted, but his tone was clipped. He realized his tone sounded harsh and worked for a split second to smooth it out before he spoke again. "However, it is a bit late for a visit and I do believe that the young lady asked you to leave," he said lightly, but his gaze betrayed his new tone. He was glaring at the wolf-boy beside us, silently telling him to just fucking leave already.

"Do you need me to show you the way out?" Emmett asked in a hard voice.

Jacob's upper lip began to curl into a snarl.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Jasper lightly warned before letting out a fierce growl of his own.

Isabella seemed very entertained by it all. I noticed the small smile on her face as she watched my family become hostile towards Jacob.

_Why does that amuse her?_

After a minute of watching the scene, she turned her gaze back to Jacob.

"Marie says bye," she stated simply, then sniffled.

He turned his attention back to Isabella. "She's knows I'm here?"

Isabella nodded. "Go."

"Why won't she come out and see me?" he asked, perplexed.

"She can see you right now. Go," she persisted and sniffled.

"Will you let her come out? She asked me to come o-"

"GO," Isabella demanded, before she coughed and became agitated. "Edwaaaaard, he won't leave me alone!" she whined exasperatedly.

"Let's go back inside, baby girl," I suggested softly in her ear.

She stood then, completely forgetting about Jacob. When she looked at me, her gaze softened.

"But what about our stars?" she asked curiously, then glanced back up towards the sky.

I stood beside her and took her hand in mine. "They'll come back tomorrow night," I placated her.

"Promise?"

"Yes, baby. I promise."

"Kay."

Jacob watched as I hooked my hands under Isabella's shoulders and picked her up. Once her legs were around my waist, I jumped off the trampoline, landing on the ground and walked towards the back door.

I wanted to get away from Jacob before I decided to just blow off the damn treaty and fucking annihilate him. He had no business here. I didn't want him to even look at her, let alone talk to her.

_Mine._

As I was walking up the stairs to our bedroom, I noticed that Jacob had finally decided to leave. He would not be allowed on our property, unless it was to visit Marie, and even then he would have to call first. There are rules about this, goddamn it.

"Edward?"

I sighed and tried to reign in my anger. Isabella didn't feel well, and our cuddly stargazing session had gotten interrupted. She was probably pretty upset about that.

I kissed her forehead and breathed in her scent. "Yes, baby?" I murmured softly against in her warm flesh.

"Marie and me like your growly noises," she informed me lightly with a small giggle.

I chuckled. "Well, that's nice."

She nodded. "Mm-hmmm."

"Edward?"

I walked into our room and turned the corner, heading for the bathroom. "Yes?"

"Can I have my bubbles now? I wanna bath…"

"I know, that's what you're getting ready to do," I told her as I put her down on the tiled floor of the bathroom.

I bent over the tub and started the flow of warm water, knowing that it would relax any sore muscles that she may have and the steam from it would help clear up her slightly stuffy nose. I added the capful of bubble bath solution as Isabella began taking her shoes off. When I turned back around, she had her jacket off and her shirt was being pulled over her head, exposing her bra-clad chest to my view. I exhaled sharply as she dropped it on the floor, and when I saw her hands going for the little button on her jeans, I reached out a firm hand and quickly swatted her ass.

"No, Isabella," I scolded her. "You have to wait," I said with a pointed look.

"Owwie…" she pouted and looked up at me with a pitiful expression. She sniffled and gave me a questioning look with watery eyes.

I sighed and kissed her forehead. "Rules, baby girl. You _have_ to follow your rules," I reminded her before I reached into the cabinet below the sink and grabbed her Ariel doll and soap crayons. I handed them to her, then replaced Bella's Pantene shampoo bottle with a bottle of tear-free shampoo for Isabella's use tonight.

I turned back to Isabella just as she was wiping a tear away before she sniffled. She held her bath toys loosely in her hands by her sides while looking at the ground...pouting.

I gritted my teeth against the feelings of guilt bubbling in my chest. I walked over to her and put a gentle finger under her chin, lifting her face up to mine. When our eyes locked, I lightly blew my cool and calming venom breath onto her face…my secret apology.

_Sorry, baby…_

"Isabella?"

"Yeah?" she sniffled and let another little teardrop fall.

I quickly wiped it away with my thumb. "Why did I spank you just then, hmm? What rule were you getting ready to break?"

She sniffled. "Not sposta get nakey in front of people," she mumbled.

I nodded. "That's right," I told her and gently wiped away two more tears.

She sighed. "Edward?"

I dropped my hand back to my side and focused on her face.

Not her chest.

"Yes?"

"Need a tissue…"

I quickly ripped off some toilet paper from it's roll and handed it to her. When she was done blowing her nose, I turned back to the tub and shut the water flow off.

"I'll be in the bedroom, angel," I informed her, before walking by her and out of the bathroom.

I sighed and plopped down onto the king size bed. I heard the rustling of Isabella's clothes coming off, followed by the sound of her dainty feet stepping into the bathtub. I relaxed into the scent of my Bella that saturated these sheets while I listened to Isabella take a bath. She would splash around, and giggle. Sometimes she would whisper secrets to her Ariel doll about how much she loved me and Bella. She told it short little stories about the man with ugly yellow hair, who I quickly figured out was Carlisle, and not Jim, because she spat out the word 'doctor' like an expletive every once in a while.

All too soon, she was calling my name. She sounded fine though, so I immediately began to wonder what she needed.

I walked into the bathroom. "What is it, baby?"

She held the new bottle of shampoo out to me. "Open it."

I took it from her and ripped the plastic covering off the top with ease then held it back to her. "Here you go, sweetheart…"

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

She still hadn't taken the bottle back yet.

"Can you wash my hair?" she asked hopefully.

_Hell yes, I can._

I brought the bottle that was still in my hand down to my side. "Um…"

"Pretty please?" she asked sweetly. And then she gave me an adorable smile.

Washing her hair was exactly what I had been wanting to do this whole time, instead of just laying on that damn bed, waiting for her to get done.

But why did she want me to? She was always trying to prove how she was a 'big girl'…it just didn't make sense. I internally kicked myself for giving up this opportunity, but I just had to ask.

I furrowed my brow and asked softly, "Why?"

"S'better when you do it," she said with a nod.

I gave her a curious look. "Isabella, you-"

"My nose feels better, Edward," she said brightly.

I nodded, noticing she hadn't sniffled in the past ten minutes. "That's great baby, but-"

"Who was that man outside?" she asked suddenly.

I gave her a slightly stern look. Interrupting me and asking constant questions was her avoidance tactic.

"His name is Jacob, and he is Marie's friend. Isabella, you can-"

"Can you put the soapies in my hair now?" she asked hopefully, interrupting me once again.

I sighed. "Isabella, I thought you wanted to show me what a big girl you are…" I trailed off.

She nodded as she made her Ariel doll swim around the bubble mountains that she had made. Bubble mountains that were strategically placed to the sides of her and allowed me to view more of her naked body.

I squinted my eyes at her, trying to focus on her face and ignore my growing erection, as usual. "Show me then, baby. You're a big girl…wash your own hair."

"You wanna stay and watch?" she asked hopefully.

_Why does she want me in here?_

"Isabella…"

God, her soft and supple breasts were practically on full display for me right now. The airy soap bubbles did absolutely nothing to hide her little pink nipples from my view. I wanted them. I wanted to reach out and gently cup that soft flesh in my hands…softly run my thumbs over the little peaks and watch, fascinated, as they immediately perked up in reaction to my cool touch.

She looked up from her doll. "Huh?"

I bit back a groan at her utter perfection and looked back into her face. "What's up sweetheart…why do you want me in here with you every night?" I asked with genuine curiosity.

She looked sad for a minute and sucked on those fucking suckable pink lips before she asked in a small voice, "But don't you _wanna_ be in here with me?"

I cleared my throat and swallowed back some of my lust-induced venom. "I always want to be where you are, baby girl," I quickly reassured her. "But…" I hesitated, suddenly unsure of where this conversation was headed. "Bath time is supposed to be private time, sweetheart," I gently informed her.

She furrowed her brow. "Why?"

"Because it just is…you're supposed to be in here by yourself, alone, washing your hair and your body in private. Nobody is supposed to see, or watch you."

Amusement lit up her eyes. "Like a secret?"

I nodded, going along with her childish train of thoughts. "Yes, baby…exactly like a secret."

"But we don't got any secrets from each other, Edward…" she softly pointed out.

"No...we don't," I murmured, reluctantly agreeing with a small shake of my head.

"Kay, can you wash my hair now?" she asked, then started to finger the silky, wet locks…tempting me.

Before I knew what I was doing, I had squirted some of that tearless shampoo in my hand and was massaging it into her scalp and long, silky strands.

I noted Isabella's satisfied smirk in getting her way, but didn't comment on it.

I was washing her hair, and that was all that mattered. I softly ran my fingers through her long, luscious locks and continued to gently massage her scalp. It was ridiculous how much I enjoyed washing, brushing and playing with my Bella's hair. My intense focus was on each individual strand of her beautiful hair as I meticulously lathered and massaged while I wore a satisfied smirk of my own.

Isabella splashed around a bit, but mostly sat still in the tub as I washed her hair. She had her back to me while she washed her water doll's hair and sang her own rendition of the Rubber Ducky song into the otherwise, quiet room.

"…you make bath time lotts of fun! Ariel dolly, you're the one…you make bath time lotts of fun! Ariel dolly, you're the one…you make bath time lotts of fun! Ariel dolly, you're the-"

I laughed quietly at her little song that had been on repeat for the past five minutes. "Ok, baby…time to rinse."

"Kay."

She dipped her doll's head under the water and held it there for a few seconds, running her thin fingers through the red plastic strands. When she was done rinsing out her doll's hair, she lifted it out of the water and held it out to me.

I took it from her and said, "Your turn, Isabella. Rinse your hair."

She nodded and turned to lean back in the tub. I stood from the tub's ledge then, and walked over to the sink to rinse my hands. I rinsed off her doll while I was at it, then put it away, back into the cabinet below the sink.

Isabella sat back up and I looked over at her. She gasped for a breath of air and wiped at her eyes with small fists. When she was looking at me again, I smiled at her. She smiled back.

_So fucking beautiful._

"Isabella, I'm going to go pick out your jammies, alright? Come into the bedroom when your done, and don't forget to squeeze out the water from your hair, sweetheart…"

She nodded, so I walked out of the bathroom, over to the dresser in the bedroom. I grabbed the first thing I saw, which was a short white night gown with thin spaghetti shoulder straps. I'd seen Bella wear this before and I knew it would come down to her mid-thigh, so it wasn't too short. When I opened Bella's panty drawer, I picked out a pair of white cotton bikini panties to match. Isabella would not be wearing silk, or lace…that was just ridiculous. I had to stick to comfortable cotton when it came to my five year old.

I laid the bed clothes on the bed, before I grabbed a pair of my new black and blue flannel pajama pants and a black cotton wife-beater shirt. I didn't wear pajamas last night because I'm still getting used the damn concept of the useless things, but tonight my girl didn't feel well. I wanted to cater to her comfort as much as possible, and I knew that my soft cotton-wear would help. I listened and found that Isabella was still splashing around a bit, so I hurried to change into these pajamas.

When I was changed, I pulled the bed covers down, then walked towards the dvd shelf. After choosing Monsters Inc and putting it in the dvd player, I pushed the play button, effectively starting the movie.

As soon as the previews started showing, Isabella spoke up. "Edward, what you put on?" she asked from her spot in the bath tub.

"Monsters...baby, you're done in the tub. Come out here. It's time to get dressed and ready for bed," I told her.

"But my bubbles, Edward..." her tone let me know that she was pouting.

I grabbed her baby doll, with it's accessory bag and set it on top of the bed, so that it would be ready for her to get the doll ready for bed, as well. You know...since she's such a good mommy, and all.

"Isabella, bath time is over," I repeated.

"But, I'm colorin on my bubble mountains with my soapie crayons, and it's pretty, and I can't just stop -"

"Yes, you can, Isabella. You need to listen. Do as your told," I said with finality from my spot on the bed.

"Edward?"

"What?"

"How come your bein so bossy?"

I smiled. "I'm not, it just seems that way because you don't want to do what you're supposed to."

"Yah-huh, Edward...you're being a bossy-pants, and my bubble mountains gotta get done. I got one that's purple and red, the next one I'm gonna make blue and-"

I gritted my teeth, then relaxed my jaw three times before I spoke again. "Isabella, do you want another spanking?"

She went quiet then.

"Well?" I prodded.

"No..." she whispered.

"I think you do," I challenged. "Otherwise, you would have listened and gotten out of the tub by now."

She started to cry. "No, Edwaaaard..."

I sighed. "Then get out of the tub, sweetheart. Your movie is on, and your baby doll is waiting for you to come and get her ready for bed," I conjoled her softly.

She quieted what had been the beginning of her cries. "Am I in trouble?" she hedged.

I ran a frustrated hand through my wild hair.

_Why is she testing me again?_

"Get out of the tub, Isabella," my tone was a clear warning.

She recognized the warning and I heard her getting out of the bath tub then. A few seconds later, I heard the bathroom sink turn on as she began brushing her teeth.

_Thank God._

When she walked into the room, wrapped in that big white towel three minutes later, I turned and gave her a reassuring smile so that she wouldn't think she was in trouble.

I got up from the bed and kissed her forehead to make sure the fever was staying at bay. She hadn't developed one yet, and I wanted to keep it that way. Tonight, she wouldn't have a protein shake, or a sleeping pill. Just some more cold medicine before bed.

"Get dressed, sweetie pie," I told her, then walked off towards the bathroom.

Once the tub was drained and rinsed, I dried the floor, as my new routine called for. After I tossed the soap crayons under the sink, I grabbed her hairbrush off of the counter and made my way back to the bedroom.

Isabella was dressed and sitting on the bed, half paying attention to the movie playing on the screen, and half paying attention to what she was doing with her doll. I sat behind her and wrapped my arm around her waist. I pulled her back a few inches so that she was flush against my chest before I started my soft brush strokes. She hummed in contentment at my gentle minstrations, as she finished dressing her baby doll in it's clothes. When she was done, she leaned against my chest and turned her full attention back to the movie.

Ten minutes later, I was done brushing her hair and she had taken another dose of her Tylenol cold medicine. She turned on her side and reached a hand up into my hair. As she started to softly play with it, and twirl different strands, she popped her thumb into her mouth.

I looked at the time and noticed that it was almost ten, so it would be normal for her to be tired by now. I watched her as she sucked her thumb, lazily traced circles through my hair, and kept her rapt attention on the movie. When her eyes started to droop, her thumb suddenly popped out of her mouth.

She looked away from the movie to me and blinked. "Edward..."

I smiled and kissed her.

BPOV

Everything came back into focus fairly fast. I opened my eyes to see that Monsters Inc movie playing on our tv. I felt Edward behind me and my hand was in his hair. I turned to look at him and smiled. I noticed that I had a slightly stuffy nose when I breathed out, "Edward..."

He gave me a dazzling smile before his lips crashed onto mine. I loved this. How he seemed to miss me all the time, but then I wasn't even really gone.

I twisted my body around, so that I was now straddling his hips.

I playfully smirked. "Miss me?"

"God, Bella...you have no fucking idea," he murmured before pressing his lips to mine again.

"Show me," I whispered.

All of a sudden, a devilish grin spread across his features as he stared into my eyes. I could feel my girly bits become all tingly under his gaze and when he breathed in, that devilish grin turned into a smug, panty-dropping smirk.

_Yeah. Cocky bastard knew I was turned on._

Before I could even begin to feel embarrassed, he had his gentle but insistent lips back on mine. He kept one hand on the small of my back, holding me in place while his other hand traveled slowly up my back. Soon, it found it's destination on the side of my neck.

I had my hands fisted in Edward's hair, lightly tugging on it. When my tongue slid out to glide along his bottom lip, he chuckled and moved the hand that he had placed on my neck, over to the back of my head. He grabbed a fistful of my long hair at the nape of my neck, then began softly tugging my head to the side.

I knew what he wanted and it made me smile. I let him take control as I tilted my head to the side to give him access to what he wanted the most. His lips left mine then, and traveled along my jaw, down my throat and skimmed my flesh until he was at the place where my shoulder and neck met. As soon as his lips made purchase on that sensitive skin, he started placing gentle, open mouth kisses all around the area.

Teasing me.

I moaned in protest and rocked my hips against him. The hand on the small of my back, increased it's pressure in an effort to keep me still as I felt his mouth curve into a smile. He stayed silent and focused on his task, making sure to cover every centimeter of the exposed skin with frosty fuckhott kisses that did nothing to cool me down. I only seemed to be getting hotter and hotter the longer this continued. I tried rocking my hips again in an effort to get some friction, but then he stopped.

He just...fucking _stopped_.

_What the hell?_

He glided his lips over to the shell of my ear and licked at my lobe a bit before murmuring, "Uh-uh, Bella. Mmmmm, stay still. Can you do that for me, love?"

I quickly nodded, willing to do anything just to get his mouth to work it's magic on me again.

He lightly chuckled at my eagerness. "Good girl," he whispered in my ear, sending a shiver down my spine, before I felt his lips glide back over to my favorite spot.

My breathing picked up and I'm pretty sure that I was slightly panting in anticipation, but I couldn't find it in me to be embarrassed about it, because he seemed to be enjoying my body's reaction immensely. I let some soft moans escape my lips as I tugged on his hair, trying to get him to just..._get on with it already_.

A freakin decade later, his hand was still fisted in my hair, forcing my head to the side slightly, so that he could continue this torture. I decided that I couldn't take it anymore, so I whispered out a plea.

"Please..."

"Please, what?" he murmured against my skin in a soft, seductive voice.

I let out a breathy moan. "Please...mark me, Edward."

With that, he smiled and let his lips finally close over that sensitive area on my neck, moaning in pleasure at the taste, before he began the subtle sucking motion with his mouth and tongue that I loved so much.

He was marking me and I fucking loved it.

After a minute, I was pretty sure that I could orgasm from this alone, and that was pretty sad.

_Who got off on getting a hickey? Apparenty, I did._

I was clinging to Edward, trying to hold his face in place on my neck, when he reluctantly pulled away. When he did, I realized that I wasn't the only one who had gotten worked up. He was panting some himself and his beautiful, gold eyes had turned black.

He groaned and released his fisted hold on my hair. I slipped my hands from his hair also, and gently cupped his face. I brought his face to mine then, for some more of those kisses that I craved so much. They started off heated, and we could feel eachother's desperation with each one, before they eventually calmed down to those soft, cute kisses with the murmured, 'I love yous'.

Edward was lightly fluttering frosty, pecking kisses across my left cheekbone when I broke the silence of the room.

"Edward, what happened after therapy?" I asked softly.

He gave my nose one last kiss, before he suggested that we lay down. I agreed, feeling pretty tired all of a sudden. When he layed on his back, I decided that I wanted to sleep on my side tonight, so I assumed the original position, as opposed to my new one, where I had to sleep on top of him. He began talking as I put my head on his shoulder and snuggled tightly into his side. When I draped my arm across his hard abs, he wrapped his arm around me. I could feel his fingertips softly trail along my back and occasionally play with my hair as he continued telling me everything that had happened.

Basically, to sum it all up: Isabella is a brat, Edward got away this afternoon to go hunting, and I have a cold. Oh yeah, and Jacob showed up, but that's hardly important. I'm still pissed off at that douchebag.

"Edward..." I hedged softly.

"Hmm?"

"There's something I need to tell you about Isabella."

He turned his head to look into my eyes. I saw that his were suddenly filled with apprehension. "What...?"

**Don't tell him.**

"Um..." I hesitated at Isabella's voice.

**Please, Bella? I'll get in trouble...**

_I don't think you will._

**I will** she said sadly.

"What is it, love?"

"Your right, Isabella has been testing you. But it's not just in the ways that you think, Edward."

"What are you talking about, Bella? I took care of it -"

I shook my head subtly. "No...no, Edward. You didn't."

"What?" he insisted.

**Bella, don't...**

I sighed.

_Sorry, kid..._

"Edward, don't help Isabella with her baths anymore," I advised, hoping that I could just leave it at that.

He furrowed his brow, then asked hesitantly. "Why...?"

**Bella, don't tell on me!**

_You won't be in trouble!_

"Okay, yeah...you took care of her behavior and her testing you on many different things, but you forgot her main problem. A big problem..." I hedged.

"What, Bella? Just tell me," he demanded.

I decided to just spit it out. He obviously wasn't going to let it go.

"Isabella has been testing you in the bathroom too."

He slightly gasped, but I continued on.

"You have to see things from her point of view, Edward. She is an abused little girl and you are a man. You tell her all the time that she belongs to you...baby, while that may mean one thing between the two of us, it is something _completely different_ for Isabella. A man showing ownership over me...or, her, I mean...is something that she is ironically used to."

I shook my head then. "I mean, don't get me wrong...she completely accepts your, umm...'ownership' and she absolutely adores you. But she is still trying to see what kind of 'owner' you will be. A kind one, or one that will hurt her and take advantage of a situation. Or one that will let other people hurt her...God, it's so hard to explain-"

"No, I think I get it," he snapped.

I sighed, "Are you mad?"

His gaze on me became immediately concerned. "No, sweetheart," he assured me. "Jesus, I'm not mad...it's just..." he sighed. "Just, that a lot of her behavior makes sense now. Her always looking to me for permission to do certain things, like speak to another man, or use the fucking bathroom. Or, her always asking me if I'm going to let a specific person hurt her..." he cringed. "Or fuck her, for God sakes," he told me, slightly exasperated.

"Yeah...exactly. And bath time? That's just her trying to see if you'll take advantage in the sexual aspect of things. She almost expects you to, ya know...and the fucked up thing about it, is that she won't reject you. Or say no. Because she _belongs_ to you-"

He looked to the ceiling then. "Fucking Christ, _Bella_," he snapped.

"What?"

He slowly turned his head back towards me. His golden eyes were pained as they bore into my brown ones.

"What the hell happened to you?" he whispered as he pressed a cool kiss to my forehead.

When he pulled back to look into my eyes, I shrugged. "Um...I don't really know."

His concerned gaze became confused then, and before I could allow myself to explain, I found myself giving him advice.

"Look, honey...just continue doing what you're doing, okay? You're doing a wonderful job, and the girls practically worship you. Just...with Isabella, continue on like you are. Show her that this type of 'ownership' is the good kind," I said with a nod and some good ol' air quotes. "She will see eventually that you are not going to let anyone hurt her and that you are to be trusted completely. Just, for God sakes...no more bath time. You got her that tearless shampoo, right?"

He nodded.

"Okay, then she should be fine. Stay firm, Edward. She is insecure about this, and that's why she's going to continue to test you on it. Unless something is very wrong, or she's crying, or something...leave her in the bathroom to take a bath by herself. Can you do that?" I hedged softly.

He gave me a small smile. "Yes."

I yawned then, and he rolled onto his side towards me, causing me to lay on my stomach beside him. I turned my head to face him as I burrowed it into the soft pillow. He softly swept some hair out of my face with his gentle hand.

"Go to sleep, my Bella...you're so tired," he whispered close to my face as he placed a kiss to my cheek. "And you've got a bit of a cold," he added in a soft voice, but it was strained under his concern for my health.

I just nodded and let my eyes drift close. A second later, I felt the blankets being pulled over my body. Then, there were his fingers, as they trailed softly up and down my back and lazily played with my hair. Soon, I was being lulled into unconciousness by his honey-sweet smell and cool, soothing touch.

* * *

A/N:

What do you think of Isabella's bath time deceptions? Should Edward be mad about it? Will he be?

Hmmmmm....

Should there be a bit of lemony goodness next chapter?

Leave me a REVIEW ~** Pretty Please **~


	28. His Dream Come True

A/N:

Lemony goodness! :) ---my first attempt---

* * *

EPOV

Bella was fast asleep at my side. She lay on her stomach, with her face turned towards me. I lay on my side, facing her…and I just stared at her.

She was so beautiful and I felt a small smile creep onto my face, knowing that she was mine. I swept some strands of her long hair out of her face, so I that could see all of her. Her slightly rosy cheeks, adorable button nose…long eyelashes that swept across her high cheekbones, connected to the soft lids that were hiding her chocolate eyes from my view right now. Her dark hair was a contrast to her creamy pale flesh. My eyes zeroed in on the dusting of freckles across that little nose. I wanted to reach out a finger and trace them, play connect the dots.

I ran my fingers lightly through her hair, down her back.

I had missed her. She has yet to be gone, or out of awareness, for more than thirty hours, or so…but I had still missed her. She was here the whole time, yet she wasn't. I have officially begun to view Marie and Isabella as individuals, through my Bella. I loved all three of them.

I didn't get to spend time with Marie today, and I found myself becoming melancholy with that realization. She had slipped out in therapy with Carlisle and had been here with Alice while I was out hunting. In fact, she had been the one to wake up from Isabella's nap this afternoon. But now that my Bella was sick with a bit of a cold, I seriously doubted that I would see her anytime soon. I didn't like that…I missed her.

And as for my little Isabella…there are no words. She has been out a lot lately, no doubt because she is the possessive one of the bunch, and she wants to spend time with me. As trying as she can be sometimes, I know that I don't want to live without her. I love her so much…whining, racial slurs, and all. This whole experience, that I haven't even been exposed to for a week yet, has given me an opportunity to try out being a parent. It can be particularly hard at times, but I'm enjoying it for the most part. Knowing that she trusts me and relies on me for just about everything, is oddly satisfying. It makes me feel needed…even more so than when I'm just with my Bella. Bella may need me, but not for _everything_. She is grown and values her independence. Isabella, though…_she_ needs me. I can tell by the things that she says and the way that she looks at me, with those wide chocolate eyes that mirror such devotion to me. I found myself wondering if she will be the one to wake up in the morning, or not.

I smiled, thinking of our time on the trampoline this evening, before that despicable dog had interrupted us. She had asked if Never Never Land was up in the big sky. She's so full of questions and such hidden innocence. My little girl is so adorable and care-free…not to mention mischievous.

I can't believe she had been testing me with her bath times. Now that I look back on it, I should have been suspicious that first night. I mean…why could she scrub off the marker from her arm, hand, and chin…but not her cheeks? That just didn't make sense. I was so absorbed in my effort in not getting aroused at her naked form, that I didn't even stop to think about how her marker story didn't add up.

Oh well, there's nothing that I can do about it now. I just have to let her know about a new rule: bath time is private time. And staying firm on it shouldn't be a problem. Sure, I wouldn't be able to wash her hair anymore, but that didn't really matter to me anymore once I looked at the big picture. I'm not going to address her deceit on this matter, because I understand why she was doing it. It was the only way she knew how to see if I was safe or not. I have never been more thankful for my self-control, than I am right now. If I had lost control that first night, and given into my instincts to take her in that bathtub, then my relationship with Isabella would be severely damaged.

Bella started to stir beside me. I watched, intrigued, wondering if she was going to talk for me tonight. Marie didn't talk. Isabella didn't talk. But my Bella did…she _always_ did. I stared intently at her mouth, willing it to move…to form words, giving me a sneak peek into her hidden mind.

"Edward…" she mumbled sleepily.

I smiled, loving the way my name sounded on her lips.

She moaned a little, then moved her feet an inch to the left, before she stilled and quieted down. I stayed in my position, waiting for her to speak again.

"Edward…mmm…" she whispered.

That's when I smelled it. The most enticing smell on the planet. My Bella was becoming aroused, automatically putting my primal senses on alert. I watched, fascinated, as she moaned my name again and her small hand reached out to grab onto my shirt. I stayed still, but couldn't stop my eyes from drifting over to her ass as it subtly moved from side to side four times, giving it a little wiggle. She had kicked off the blanket about an hour ago, but I hadn't covered her back up because her skin had felt so warm.

I kept my gaze on that round flesh as she moaned my name once again. When I looked back to her face, her brow was slightly furrowed, so I reached out a tentative hand and placed it flat on her back. I rubbed small circles into her hip with my thumb, while keeping my palm flat against the small of her back.

"Shhh…" I whispered in her ear.

"Mmm, Edward…" she mumbled.

I kissed her hair. "Bella, shhh…" I whispered to her again.

If she didn't stop all that moaning, then I wouldn't be able to stop myself from waking her up and making my fantasy come true.

"Mmmm…" she sighed.

I gritted my teeth.

_Alright, love…you asked for it._

My thumb left her hip as I started softly trailing my fingers along the entire length of her back.

I kissed her cheek. "Bella…"

I moved from her cheek down to her neck and kissed the mark I had made on her earlier.

_**My** mark._

The sight of it gave me a rushed high of lust and made me hard, making my primal need to please and satisfy my woman increase in it's intensity.

"Bella," I murmured on the skin near her ear.

I needed her to wake up. Tell me that this was what she wanted.

She sighed, "Hmm?" her voice no longer a whispered moan.

Her arousal assaulted my senses again as I breathed in, before I spoke to her.

I kept my voice soft and low. "Bella…baby, tell me what you want."

Her eyes peeked open and I smiled softly at her. I loved her eyes.

_So pretty…so chocolatey._

"Edward?" she whispered.

"Hmmm?" I hummed in response, my hand still traveling along the length of her back.

I saw as her delicious blush colored her cheeks and it entranced my eyes for a moment. I wondered if her breasts blushed when she was close to climaxing.

_Only one way to find out…_

"Edward, I…" she didn't finish her sentence, and I knew it was because she was endearingly shy.

_Aw. How adorable._

I gave her a reassuring smile. "I know, love…shhh," I whispered to her in the darkness, before putting my hand that was on her back, to her side. I gripped her waist and scooted her closer to me. "I'll take care of you, baby," I assured her softly.

She looked into my eyes and silently nodded, her trust in me shining out of those chocolate depths. I lifted her head and placed it on my arm, so that I was slightly holding her to me. Her face was flushed and she was breathing sort of heavily, her heart-rate elevated a bit…probably in anticipation. I smiled, loving the sound of it as her blood sang to me while her sweet, warm breath washed over my face.

She was still laying on her stomach. I put my hand to the nape of her neck, and in one slow swoop, I had moved all of her long locks, away from her face and off of her back. It was fanned on the mattress to her side now, just where I wanted it. My eyes flashed back down to her ass, currently covered by her little white night gown and thin cotton panties.

I placed my hand on the small of her back. "You want me to make you feel good, Bella?" I cooed softly in her ear.

She silently nodded.

I slowly moved my hand down, over the curve of her ass, then brushed back over it as I brought the soft fabric of her night gown up to her waist, exposing her panty-clad bottom to my view. Her breath hitched as I placed my cool hand back on her warm flesh, skimming softly over her panties.

I massaged it for a few seconds, trying to coax another moan out of her. When she gave a breathy moan, I responded with a soft pat to her right cheek that I had been caressing.

"C'mon baby, lift that pert little ass in the air for me," I whispered to her.

I smiled when she did. She used her knees for support as her hips lifted a few inches off the bed. I let my hand travel along that delectable curve once again, dipping below to the front of her. I hissed in a breath at the heat radiating from her sex. She moaned as I methodically moved my fingers up and down, exploring her warmth over her panties.

"Mmmm, Bella…so _warm_," I purred in her ear.

"Oh, God," she gasped, as I used my finger to move her panties to the side.

With her ass still slightly in the air, I slowly dipped a finger in between her soft folds, fascinated at the wetness my finger had encountered.

"Aw, my Bella…" I cooed softly to her. "So _wet_ and ready for me, huh?"

She nodded and sighed as my finger found her little clit. I began circling it slowly but insistantly, while staring into her face. I was entranced by her facial expressions. They were so beautiful…so full of lust and want. It also helped me gauge her reactions, letting me know if I was doing something that made her uncomfortable.

After a minute, I withdrew my hand, to which she pouted. I lightly chuckled at her as I looked on her with adoration. I held her wide gaze with my own intent one as I brought the finger that had explored her pussy, to my mouth. I wanted a taste. A little appetizer before my main course, if you will. She watched as I put the finger in my mouth, humming in appreciation at her exquisite taste. It was sweetness, and freesias, and pure Bella.

_I want **more**._

I kissed her lips softly, unable to hold back my guttural moan as her tongue glided across my bottom lip, tasting herself on me. It was just…so fucking erotic, and the heat from her tongue tingling on my lips only added to my pleasure. I cradled her chin in my hand, and kept her face to mine in a heated kiss. I kept her there until I knew she needed air, then I withdrew, relishing in the delicious sound of her gasping for breath. Soon, she would be gasping for other reasons.

I put my hand to her shoulder and rolled her over onto her back. I followed until I was hovering over her. I placed soft kisses all along her face and neck, letting my tongue dart out on the mark I had left on her.

She was panting and breathless when I murmured against her skin, "Bella, tell me what you want…"

"I want to you touch me, Edward," she said breathlessly.

I lifted my head from her lovely throat and smirked at her. "I am touching you…"

She bit her lip, realizing that I wanted her to break down her shy barriers and voice her needs to me. When she didn't speak, I placed my thigh against her hot core and reached out a hand a cupped her soft breast through her night gown. She moaned and arched into my touch.

"Here, Bella?" my voice softly lilted at her while I stared imploringly into her chocolate eyes.

She nodded. "Yes…please..."

I moaned at that word and lightly ran my cool finger in a circle around her nipple. I could feel it begin to perk up, and I suddenly wanted to see it. I wanted to see her body's reaction to me. I quickly ripped down the middle of her night gown, immediately exposing her naked chest to me. She gasped at the sudden movement and new sound of fabric tearing.

I smirked at her. "Don't be scared…I won't bite," I lightly teased.

I watched as a small smile crept onto her face. I dipped my face down to kiss her pink lips once more, before I allowed my gaze to drift down to her soft and supple perfection. And there they were…fucking glorious and finally bubble-free.

I hissed in a breath. "Bella…so fucking beautiful."

I skimmed my hand up her side, before I brought it to her right breast. I felt the pink bud perk up against my palm. I took my hand away and ran my thumb over the nipple on her other breast, not wanting that one to feel left out. I smiled as I watched them both harden and perk up under my ministrations. I kissed her neck and felt the vibrations from Bella's throat on my lips as she moaned.

"Bella…"

I lifted my face to look into her eyes as I rolled a bud in between my fingers.

"Edward, please," she whimpered.

_Oh God…say it **again**._

"I want to taste this skin, Bella," I said softly while repeatedly running the pad of my thumb over her hardened peak. "Can I do that?"

Her body arched into my hand. "Please," she breathed out.

_That's right, love. Fucking beg for it._

I cupped my hand around the creamy flesh as I bent my head and kissed the soft swell of her breast. Her breathing was coming in short bursts and I could feel the moist heat of her core against my thigh that she was currently straddling.

The closer I moved my mouth to her nipple the harder she pressed her pussy against my leg. I slid my tongue out of my mouth and circled the taut peak.

She cried out as my lips closed around it. I began to subtly suck with my lips and tongue, knowing how much she loved it when I did this to her succulent neck.

"Fuck, Edward…oh, God," her breath rushed out.

I withdrew my mouth and switched to the other one, making sure to give her perfect peaks equal attention. Her moans and gasps became a buzz in my mind as I focused my attention on pleasuring her while staying in control.

Soon, my thigh against her sex, became my palm as I reached out an eager hand between her thighs to cup her warm, moist panties.

I started bringing my mouth lower, reluctantly dragging my tongue away from her chest. I kissed all along her taut belly, down to her cute little belly button. I removed my hands from their cupped position on her breasts, and put them to her sides. I dipped my tongue in that tiny button, before looking back up at her face.

She was staring down her belly at me. "Mmmmmm…" she moaned, as my hands squeezed her sides and moved her down the bed a bit.

I was putting her in position for what I was getting ready to do.

I smiled and ran a light finger along her panty line. Back and forth, from hip to hip.

"Bella…" I breathed, inches away from the most delicious smell in the universe. "I want to taste you."

"Oh, God…" she whispered, before she let her head flop back onto the pillow.

I chuckled, lightly blowing my cool breath onto her overheated skin. I saw how her blush was starting to creep down below her collarbone now, and it made me smile. Maybe by the time I was through, it would spread to her beautiful breasts as well.

"You like that, baby? Hmmm?" I asked as my fingers teased her panty line, ready to rip it right off her body.

"Yes…" she breathed out.

"You want me to taste your sweet little pussy, Bella?"

"God, yes," she hissed out in lust.

I grinned, knowing that she was exactly where I wanted her. I slowly licked along her panty line. Hip to hip, down to the crease of her inner thigh, back up again and over to the other crease.

"Edwaaard…" she moaned.

"Ask for it," I demanded.

"Goddamn it, Edward…" she sighed, then moaned.

"Hmmm…" I breathed against her panties right above where I knew her little clit was. "Ask me baby, I'll do whatever you like…" I trailed off suggestively.

"Please…" she whimpered.

_Oh, fuck yes._

I moaned against her panties. I lifted my head a bit and murmured against her hip bone, "Please, what Bella?"

"Please, Edward…taste me," she whispered as her face colored with that delicious blush.

I lightly chuckled in satisfaction. "Good girl," I whispered back before ripping away those annoying cotton panties that had been in my way this entire time.

My tongue quickly found it's treasure. Her voice silently keened out her throat as my tongue circled around and fluttered against her tasty little bud.

"Mmmmm…" I hummed into her core.

I delighted in the fact that her soft folds were surprisingly bare. Smooth, naked and bare.

_Does she wax?_

I quickly tossed that question aside and focused back on the task of making my Bella cum.

Soon, her hips started to instinctually gyrate and grind against my mouth.

I smiled.

_My favorite part…_

I placed my hands on either sides of her hips, firmly holding her in place against my face. She moaned and I could feel her muscles under my hands…she was still trying to move.

_Well, that just won't do._

I circled her entrance with my tongue and lightly sucked her clit in between my lips before lifting my face from her delicious taste.

"You want me to fuck you with my tongue?" I asked her, my voice husky with lust.

She nodded frantically through her constant breathy moans.

I kissed her folds before murmuring against them. "Then be still, Bella," I told her, punctuating my command with a soft squeeze on her hips.

She stilled, so I rewarded her by slipping a cool digit into her entrance while my mouth stayed concentrated on her tasty little pink bud. I could do this forever. She tasted so fucking delicious. My finger was immediately enveloped in tight, wet heat. And intense heat. I stilled my finger, to get used to the sensation of it all.

"Fuck, Bella… I purred against her skin.

She moaned loudly.

"So _tight_, so wet…" I trailed off as my finger started gliding in and out of her slowly, before picking up speed.

I lightly flicked my tongue over her clit, keeping it's speed in tune with my finger. I wiggled my finger slightly, enjoying it when her reaction was a squirm and a shiver. So I did it again. And again. She was moaning and gasping and I could feel her inner walls begin to contract and squeeze tightly around my finger. I wasn't ready for this to be over yet, so I withdrew my mouth and finger.

She panted for breath and I started kissing along her belly and licking that adorable belly button, while lightly kneading the tops of her thighs.

"Edwaaaard…" she whined, clearly frustrated, once her breathing had calmed down.

I peeked up at her under my eye lashes. I gave her a reassuring smile, before I told her in a soft, but husky voice, "No Bella…you cum _how_ I say, _when_ I say. Your pleasure belongs to _me_," I informed her before dipping my head back down and caressing her sensitive clit with my cool tongue once more.

"K-kay" she stuttered out with a ragged breath.

"Mmmm," I moaned at her taste before taking my mouth away and looking back to her face.

I smiled adoringly at her beautifully frustrated state.

"Such a pretty pussy…" I cooed softly at her, before I took a hand off her thigh and lightly ran my fingertips along her bare folds.

A breath rushed out of her mouth as she squeezed her eyes shut. I knew what she wanted.

I wanted her to beg for it.

"Bella?" I murmured her name softly.

"Hmm?" she moaned out.

I slightly raised my eyebrows at her closed eyes. I needed them open…needed to always gauge her reaction. Anxiety started to creep in.

"Look at me," I demanded in a rushed voice.

Her eyes flew back open and she looked down at my tempting position over her hyper-sensitive, wet sex.

I calmed at the sight of her lustful gaze. "You wanna cum for me, baby?" I asked in a velvety-smooth voice.

"Oh…yes. Yes, please, Edward…" she begged, gasping in a breath and moaning it out.

"_Fuck_…Bella, say it again," I demanded

"Edward, please…fucking _please_," she yelled out.

"_Yes_," I hissed out, before attaching my mouth back to her lovely mound.

I stayed there, focused intently on my task on pleasing my woman. Her pleas to 'go faster' delighted my ears, but otherwise went ignored.

I was doing this my way…my pace.

_My fantasy._

I added a finger, gliding them in and out of her hot, wet core…sometimes fast, sometimes slow. My tongue stayed in it's new favorite spot; Bella's tasty little pleasure bud. Sometimes I would flick it sharply with the tip of my tongue when it hardened. Sometimes I would flatten my tongue against it, feeling it harden as I laved against it. Bella seemed to enjoy when I would lightly flutter my tongue against it, then circle it, making her breathing increase and the blush spread further down, below her collarbone.

When I peeked up at her from between her creamy thighs, I saw that glorious blush extend down to the swell of her breasts. I lightly blew a cool breath onto her sex, watching in amusement as a shiver ran up her spine.

"Bella…" I whispered softly against her clit, before licking it once more. I purred against in her delicious pussy, "Cum for me, Bella," before replacing my fingers with my tongue.

Seconds later, I felt her walls contract against my tongue as her tasty juices flowed onto it while Bella ground against my face, riding out her orgasm. I breathed in deeply, my nose above her pubic bone, delighting my senses in both the enticing aroma and taste of my Bella. I withdrew my tongue then, only to slowly lick up and down her slit, wanting to devour everything that her climax gave me.

I felt Bella's body shudder lightly every time my cool tongue would pass over her oh so sensitive tiny clit. When I was sure I had properly cleaned her up, I placed a soft kiss to her clit, sad at the thought of having to wait until I could taste it again.

When I lifted my head up to look at her, I smiled at the look of bliss on her face. I felt pride swell in my chest and soon I was sporting a smug grin.

_Yeah. I just made my girl cum._

I suddenly found myself wondering when I could do it again. After double checking my control, I moved so that I was hovering above her and spoke.

"My Bella, so beautiful…" I told her with my adoring gaze.

She sighed and smiled up at me. "Edward…are you okay?"

I nodded. "Mm-hmm."

She furrowed her brow, and reached out a gentle hand to cup my cheek. "That wasn't too much for you to handle?"

"No, Bella," I assured her.

And I was fine. I couldn't help but grow excited at the fact that I could give my Bella pleasure while staying in perfect control.

_I. Am. Fucking. Awesome._

She stared into my eyes, as I stared back into her chocolate ones. She smiled brightly at me and I smiled back.

"Did you like it, Bella?" I asked her, suddenly in need of reassurance that I could, in fact, do it again if I wanted.

She nodded. "Yes, Edward...definitely," she said with blush. "I love you."

I laid down beside her then gathered her in my arms. We lay on our sides, facing each other as I kissed her soft lips, then her button nose, before moving to her forehead to check for a fever. Once I was satisfied that she still didn't have one, I smiled against her warm skin.

"I love you too, my Bella."

She laid her head on my shoulder and wrapped her arm around my waist. Her fingers started lightly moving against the skin on my back. I held her naked body against my clothed one, and hummed lightly until she fell into a peaceful sleep.

Once I was sure she was completely out, I carefully slipped out of bed and grabbed the clothes that I had ripped off her body. Once I disposed of them in the bathroom trash, I picked out another night gown for her to wear, but this one was powder blue. After grabbing another pair of panties, I silently crept back onto the bed to begin the task of dressing her.

I wanted to keep her naked body revealed to my eyes, but I couldn't risk Isabella waking up naked. I had to get back into that parental frame of mind, and realize that would only cause problems. Especially since Isabella is very confused about sexuality.

Once I had easily slid the pair of white panties with blue trim, up her silky smooth legs, I started on the task of her night gown. I gently lifted her head and slipped the top of it over her head, leaving the fabric bundled at her neck. Then, ever-so-gently, I lifted each of her arms and put them through the gown's sleeves. I quickly lifted the middle of her back, to slide the gown the rest of the way down her body.

When I was satisfied that she was dressed, I slipped back into bed beside her and brought her limp body back into my arms. I cocooned us in the big, gold comforter, wanting to make sure she stayed warm against my cold body. We remained in that position, her pressed into me with my face buried in her dark, _mmm_ smell so good, long locks, breathing in her heavenly scent until she woke in the morning.

* * *

A/N:

Well YaY ~ Edward finally got some.

Are you happy for him? I sure as hell am :)

Let me know in a fuckawesome review!

xoxo


	29. Old Memories And Old Friends

A/N:

This chapter contains graphic and descriptive child abuse. Bella's memories/flashbacks will be written in italics. ENJOY darlings! :)

* * *

EPOV

She finally opened her eyes at 8:49 in the morning. I smiled at her, then lightly kissed her eyelids as they lazily slid closed again. When she opened them back up a second later, she smiled back at me.

"Morning, beautiful," I said softly into the quiet of the room.

"Mornin, handsome," she responded.

I hummed against her forehead, satisfied to find that she still did not have a fever.

She scrunched up her nose. "My nose is kinda stuffy."

I nodded. "You can take some cold medicine after breakfast, love."

She was silent for a minute and blushed. "Edward…where did you learn how to do that?" she asked while trying to suppress a smile.

I chuckled at her shyness. "Do what?" I asked, deciding to tease her.

She giggled. "You know…"

"Say it, baby," I requested before giving her lips a soft, good morning kiss.

She blushed and shook her head.

I sighed and brought my mouth to her ear, "You want to know how I knew what to do to make you cum for me, sweetheart?" I asked innocently.

"Mm-hmmm…" she nodded.

"Bella, I'm a mind reader. I've seen and heard many, many techniques. Some of which are very interesting…" I trailed off suggestively.

She smiled through her blush. "Kay…" she whispered.

I chuckled, amazed that she could cum on my face, then turn around and be shy about it. "You're fucking precious."

She laughed and lightly slapped my chest. "I love you…" she trailed off before saying cheekily, "and your sexpertise."

I kissed her button nose, keeping the smile on my face. "Love you, too."

Her stomach growled at us then, notifying me and the entire house that she was hungry. I gave her one last kiss before taking the covers off of us so that we could get out of bed.

She rolled over to the edge of the bed, then hopped down onto the floor. She smiled at me as she passed by me, heading for the bathroom. While she was in there, I dressed in jeans and a light short-sleeved t-shirt. Esme notified me that she was making some bacon, eggs and fruit for Bella while I started making the bed.

A few minutes later, Bella came out of the bathroom, her hair and teeth brushed. She came up to me and stood on her tippy-toes, silently asking for a kiss. I smiled down at her and obliged. When we broke apart, she gave me a bright smile, before going over to the closet to pick out some clothes for the day.

It was nice and sunny outside today, so she picked out a little yellow sundress with thin spaghetti shoulder straps. It looked beautiful on her, and hugged her small curves nicely. She put some lotion on her face, because of her slightly chapped nose, then turned to me with a shy smile.

"Do I look pretty?" she asked while looking up at me through her eyelashes.

"Gorgeous, baby," I assured her, then pulled her into my arms.

I softly gripped her delectable little bottom, then placed a soft kiss to her neck before letting her go.

"It's time for breakfast, love."

She nodded and we started making our way downstairs.

"What time is therapy, Edward?" she asked hesitantly while we walked down the steps.

"Ten…in about half an hour, so right after breakfast, sweetheart," I gently informed her.

She nodded, and smiled at me but it didn't reach her eyes.

I squeezed her hand in reassurance.

I knew she didn't want to go. I didn't want her to go into that room without me. I didn't want to hear anymore tales of her horror. It hurt me a lot, knowing that I wasn't around to protect her when she was a child.

We were in the dining room now, and I slipped into the chair next to my Bella. She smiled and thanked Esme for breakfast, before she started taking small, delicate little bites of her meal. If I didn't know any better, I'd swear she was trying to stall for time. She would stop eating, and take a long drink. Then she would talk to me for a few minutes, before taking a couple more bites of her food.

She asked how the girls were getting along with the family. She asked how Isabella responded to Jacob. She asked if I was too stressed out by it all. Then she asked if Isabella was in trouble.

I smiled, recognizing the frequent question out of my little girl's mouth. "No," I assured her with a shake of my head.

She nodded, "Okay…she thinks that she is, so I just wanted to make sure for her. I mean, it's _fine_ if she is-"

"She's not," I repeated.

"Yeah…yeah, okay," she nodded.

All too soon, her plate was cleared of food…aka stall material, and it was time for therapy. After she took a measured dose of her cold medicine, we both gave a collective sigh before she stood from her seat at the table. I stood with her and walked by her side all the way up the stairs to the second floor, then down the hall to Carlisle's study.

BPOV

**Don't wanna go…** Isabella whined.

**Fucking hell, my Bell! When are we gonna feel better?** Marie asked.

_I don't know…_

**Well, what _do_ you know? I know that sniffly noses are some bullshit. This is getting old** Marie continued to complain in my head.

**Bella! I don't _wanna_ see his ugly yellow hair…**

_Will you two just, please…shut the fuck up? Jesus! Give a girl some peace and quiet every once in a while._

They were silent in my head then, as we arrived in front of the door to Carlisle's study. Edward leaned down to give me a kiss as Carlisle opened the door for me. He smiled at me and I smiled back.

"Good morning, Bella," he greeted me pleasantly.

"Morning," I said as I walked passed him, into the room.

I went straight for the chair that I had been in yesterday, and sat down. Edward came up behind me and dropped a cool kiss to the top of my head.

"I'll be here when you're done, sweetheart," he assured me softly.

I nodded but kept my gaze forward. "Okay, honey."

**Edward I miss you** Isabella said.

**Edward's got a fuckin wicked tongue** Marie said in amusement.

"Oh, God…" I whispered.

"What?" Edward asked, slightly alarmed.

**Why did Edward do that, Bella?** Isabella asked me curiously.

I didn't answer her. I just tried to give Edward a reassuring smile through my blush, but I'm not sure how well that worked out. "Nothing," I murmured.

_Holy shit._

He gazed at me curiously before he hesitantly nodded.

"Edward, she'll be fine," Carlisle told him as he took his seat behind his desk.

"Okay, yeah. I love you, Bella," he said before running a cool hand over my hair.

"I love you, too."

Edward walked out of the room then, softly clicking the door shut behind him. Carlisle's leather bound journal made an appearance on top of his dean-desk. His motions were fluid and precise as he opened it, and wrote a few things on a new, clean page. He looked at me and gave me a reassuring smile.

"Bella, what would you like to talk about today?"

I sighed, steeling myself against therapy and it's ridiculous repercussions. I've been dealing with it all my life. It always affects me, and my alternates, in this case, in various different ways.

"How about we just start where we left off?" I suggested, unsure of whether that was alright, or not.

Carlisle nodded, glad with my cooperation.

"Actually, Bella…would you please tell me about one of those pictures? How about the one that you had an initial reaction to. I believe it is the photo where you are a small girl, in a pink swim suit, and you are sitting on top of Jim's shoulders. It appears that you were at some kind of family gathering…" he trailed off.

"Um, yeah…sure. Just don't show it to me," I cautioned him seriously.

He nodded. "Of course not," he agreed.

**That's fuckin right, doc** Marie piped up.

I crossed my arms over my chest, lightly hugging myself as I began to speak. "Um…I was five and it was the Fourth of July. Also, known as the occasion when Jim had first fucked my mouth. It took the abuse to a whole 'nother level…" I trailed off, focusing on my old friend on Carlisle's desk: Mr. Squiggly Line.

_There is always music playing when we go to the Jeffersons' house. Mr. Jefferson is a musician. He plays guitar in a little band that plays at the local bars. The Jeffersons have a big in-ground pool in their backyard. It fills the whole yard, except for the patio where the barbeque is. They asked us to come over for a cook-out, swimming, and lotts of fireworks today. Bobby and I are excited. The band is going to play on the patio, instead of the usual records. When we get to the Jeffersons' place, there are already other people there. There are hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill, and corn wrapped in tin foil on the coals. Jim quickly joins his friends in the pool. Bobby goes right into the house to put on his swim suit, and I go with him. I wait outside the bathroom door and ask Bobby to hurry up. When he comes out, I go right in and lock the door. I put on my pink swim suit very fast, then open the door and run back outside. Jim is still in the pool. He and his friend, Brad, are fighting over a green rubber raft. He holds Brad under the water for a long time, but then he lets him come back up, laughing the whole time. Bobby goes into the water. I go and sit in my mother's lap. She is talking to Mrs. Jefferson and some other lady. They both have tall, thin glasses with straws in them. My mother's glass is shorter with lotts of ice. My mother tells me to go into the pool. I don't say anything, just eye Jim warily and stay put. I don't want Jim to hold me under the water like he did with Brad, then pass it off to everyone that he was just playing around when I turn up dead. The other lady smiles at me. She is wearing flowery clothes, and it makes me think that she's from a place I've heard about, called Hawaii.  
My mother lifts me off of her lap and says, "Go and play in the pool before the other kids get tired out. Go keep your brother company, sunshine."  
She won't let me go into the pool alone. It's too deep for me. I climb over to the ladder and let myself down into the pool. It's not too cold. Hanging onto the side, I let myself go all the way under to get my hair wet. I like the way it looks when it's wet. It's straight and smoothes down my back. The boys are on the other side of the pool. I hold onto the rim of the ladder and start to kick, like I had been learning in swim class. All of a sudden, there are hands around my waist from underneath. I kick harder, but Jim is lifting me up into the air. I am kicking as hard as I can, but he is holding me away from him, keeping a smile on his face at the charade that we are just playing. Everyone is laughing. I look over to the patio and see that my mother is laughing. Then Jim drops me into the deep water and I touch bottom. I kick and move my arms around in circles, trying to get to the top again. Jim grabs my waist and pulls me to the surface. My hair is like a wet blanket on my face and I am gasping for air. He guides my hand to the rail, then lets go of me and dips back under water. I feel a hand between my legs. I kick hard again and the hand is gone. A while later, after pictures and games, no one is in the pool anymore and it is getting dark. I am waiting for my hamburger to get done and I'm standing next to the grill, watching it cook. It smells juicy and smoky at the same time. My swim suit is still wet and I have a towel wrapped around my shoulders, but I'm shivering a little, even by the fire. I have to go to the bathroom too, but I don't want to go into the house. Jim is in there. My mother sees that I am cold and tells me to go into the house and put my dry clothes back on.  
I look at her for a long time before she puts her hand on her hip and demands, "Right this minute, young lady."  
I go up to her and ask if she will come with me. She laughs at me and pats my head, before telling me that I'm a big girl…too old to need help dressing. I turn and walk towards the house. It's dark outside now, and the band has gotten all their instruments out. Some people are laughing and making jokes. Almost everyone is having a good time. I walk through the house slowly. I can hear the guys in the living room, watching TV and talking. Jim is the loudest. I walk very softly, and don't make any noise, just like he had taught me to do. I go to the bathroom and lock the door before I turn the light on. It's hard getting my swim suit off because it's so cold and wet. I'm goose-bumpy all over and shivering. I look over to the hamper where I had left my clothes, but they're not there. I look inside the hamper. They aren't anywhere. I don't know who took them but I do know that I have to go and find them. I look at my pink suit rolled up on the floor. I can't put that back on, so I wrap a big towel around me. I unlock the door and open it as quietly as I can. I peek out into the hall. The voices are still loud and the party noises come in from the backyard. I go to the guest room where my mother had left her beach bag, feeling relieved when I see my clothes laying on top of it. I grab them and start back to the bathroom as quickly as I can and try not to make any noise.  
I am almost at the door when it opens up wide and Jim says, "Come in, Isabella. I'll be through in a minute."  
I don't move.  
Then he reaches a hand out and grabs a fistful of my hair, yanking hard. "Hurry up and get the fuck in here," he growls in a low and quiet voice.  
I rush in the room silently, clutching my clothes in front of me and keeping my eyes on the floor. He closes the door and locks it. I stand in the corner next to the hamper. He stands by the toilet and smiles at me with a glazed look in his eyes. He unzips his pants and takes out his ugly penis. He holds it in his hand, and starts to rub it up and down. He is still smiling at me as that thing gets bigger and stiffer.  
He says in a commanding, yet soft and lilting voice, "Come here. Be good for daddy, and touch it. Touch it, now."  
I don't want to move.  
He stops smiling and growls out, "Come. Here."  
I walk over to the toilet. He reaches out and takes the clothes from my hands, throwing them across the room onto the floor. He pulls the towel off of me and throws it over by my clothes. Now that I am naked before him, he forcefully grabs my wrist and puts my hand on his penis.  
He says, "Now, hold it and rub up and down."  
Both his hands are holding my shoulders still. I'm just tall enough so that his ugly thing is pointing directly in my face, staring me in the eye. At his sharp slap across my face for hesitance, I do what he says to do. Soon, he starts to breathe heavier. I look up at his face and see that he has closed his eyes. His big fingers are kneading into my shoulder blades.  
He sighs a little, then orders quickly, "Kiss it."  
He has **never** told me to do that before, and I look up at him, confused. He is looking down at me again and his mouth presses into a hard line.  
"What the fuck did I just say, Isabella? Kiss. It. Your goddamn mother loves the taste of it, I imagine you will also."  
He places a large hand behind my neck and pulls my head toward it. I purse my lips and touch the end of it. He takes my head between his hands and pushes against my jaw.  
"Open that pretty little mouth," he says, but I pretend not to hear him because his big hands are also covering my ears. He bends over me, swats my ass and repeats it. I open my mouth and he pushes his penis into it. It's huge and fills my whole mouth. I have to stretch my jaw as wide as I can and it hurts. He pulls back and forth and tries to go deeper…faster. Then, before I know what's happening, he pulls away from me and stands over the toilet again. I think he is going to the bathroom, but it comes out differently. And it's not yellow. The air is passing through his teeth slowly as he hisses in his breaths.  
Then he snaps at me, "Hurry up and get dressed."  
I can hear the music outside now. He tucks his ugly thing back into his pants and zips himself up. He sits on the edge of the tub and watches me intently as I slowly dress in front of him. When I have all my clothes on, I look at him silently, awaiting instructions.  
He stands and unlocks the door, "Go on outside, Isabella. I'll be right out."  
I walk out the back door and stand on the porch. Mom is dancing and Bobby is eating a hamburger at the picnic table. The band plays while Mrs. Jefferson makes herself another drink in her tall glass.  
My mother sees me and smiles, "Your hamburger is on the table, sweetheart, next to Bobby. It's getting cold."  
She keeps dancing. I go to the picnic table and sit down, across from Bobby. I sit still and stare at my hamburger. I can't eat it. I don't know what to do. I just sit and stare._

**Ucky…** Isabella's voice whispered in my head.

"Bella, are you alright?" Carlisle's voice asked, bringing me back to the present time.

"Hmm?" I asked, giving him a confused gaze.

He looked blurry. I blinked and realized that I had started crying. Again.

_Goddamn it, can't I ever get through a stupid therapy session tear-free? I mean, come the fuck on…_

I sighed and hastily wiped my eyes. "Yeah," I croaked out, then cleared my throat.

I nodded. "Um…yeah, sometimes I start to cry and don't even realize that I'm doing it," I said with a nonchalant shrug. "Don't worry about it," I placated him.

His gaze was concerned as he reluctantly nodded. "Alright…"

I took a cleansing breath. "And, also, there's the time when it all ended…" I trailed off.

"Ended?"

"Yeah…the last time he ever hurt me. When he was caught. It was a terrifying experience, but I'm grateful for it, all the same," I told him quietly with a small smile.

"Okay…why don't you tell me about that," he suggested as his hand went back to his journal, no doubt ready to send his pen flying as soon as I opened my mouth.

I nodded. "Sure."

"The sexual abuse had been going on for a while. Besides the physical torture of it, where he would take different devices to me, he also began molesting me pretty early. It started during bath time…"

_He would let his soapy hand explore my private and bottom, a lot. Then the Fourth of July happened. There were many repeats of him forcing himself into my mouth. A lot of times, he would call me inside, from playing, in order to undress me in the empty house, touch me, then with hurried orders not to tell Bobby, send me back out to play again. When I was seven years old, he called me inside again, but this time…he took the dog that loved and protected me and Bobby, and locked him in the closet. His hands undressing me this time were harsh and angry; his voice, abrupt and vicious. I was stupid enough to question him, and he slapped me for it right before he started having a conversation with his angel. With no words and no warning, he bent me over the arm of the couch and entered my ass dry. No preparation. No lubrication. My screams started Blitzen, our dog, barking. I must have passed out, because my next memory is of the sunlit garden through the screen door to my right and the sound of the dog barking frantically from the closet. When he was through with me, he dropped me onto the floor like a discarded dishrag. Then with his belt in hand, he began beating me, chanting on the whole time about my 'purity'. When the belt stopped it's endless rise and fall motion, he took me to my bedroom, redressed me in the same play clothes and put me into my bed, with a strict order to 'stay'. I know that I fell asleep crying, and I comforted myself with my thumb and Isabella's soft fingers through my hair. When I awoke, it was black in the room and I could hear the hum of voices through the house. I began crying again and apparently, that attracted the attention of the rest of the family. Finally, my mother opened the door and flicked on the light. When I heard her frantic cry, I looked at her and followed her eyes to my blood-soaked bed.  
To this day, I remember her turning to Jim, where he stood behind her in the doorway, and asking, "What have you done to her?"  
The next thing I remember is the hospital and the sight of a transfusion dripping into my arm. A man dressed in white was standing over me and asking my mother what had happened to me. She answered that she didn't know…that I had fallen down while playing. At her reply, the man's voice became rough and angry, startling me into tears.  
He instantly bent down to me and said with infinite tenderness, "It's alright, little one. We're all going to take good care of you."  
As I felt a needle ease into my arm on the other side, he was yelling at my mother, "Somebody did this to her!"  
I spent several weeks in the hospital and a few people came to visit. Mainly, my mother and some police officers.  
They would ask the same questions over and over again. "How did you get hurt? Who hurt you?"  
I just stayed quiet, knowing what would happen to me if I told. I remember that same man dressed in white coming into the room and speaking with the officers.  
He said, "We know and have the DNA evidence to prove that James Crowley, the mother's boyfriend who lives in the house, forcibly sodomized the child, breaking her pelvis and coxes, causing all of her internal damage."  
My mother cried quietly by my side as the police officers left the room, following the doctor out to take possession of the evidence._

"So then what happened, Bella?" Carlisle asked with rapt attention.

"Then…then, I went home. I healed. I got sent to a looney bin. I got 'better' three years later when Isabella stopped coming around," I told him.

"How did that make you feel when Isabella went away?" he asked in a soft voice.

I was quiet then, and hesitated before I answered him, unsure of what his reaction as my doctor would be. "Alone…" I whispered.

**Love you, Bella** Isabella told me.

_Yeah…I love you, too._

He nodded and wrote some more in his journal. I continued talking, to pass the time.

I sighed and sniffled.

_Damn cold._

**Tell me about it** Marie chimed in.

"Well, Carlisle…you know, I don't think anyone understands the feeling of hopelessness better than an abused child. There is no one to turn to, no place to escape. I lived in terror of Jim and his angel…"

_Mom would ask me how I got bruised, and what the burns on my body were from.  
I would say, "I wasn't careful, Mommy…I'm sorry."  
She would simply kiss them better, and that would be the end of it. Her nickname for me was 'Sunshine'. She said it was because I laughed a lot and brightened her day. I was happy with mom. I was safe when she was around. I would sit in her lap on the rocker and rub the back of her neck with my tiny fingers after she had a long day at work. She smelled of soap and subtle perfume. She would squeeze me tight and cuddle me. I would kiss her cheek, and play with her hair. I remember painting her pictures and picking her flowers from the garden. I lavished loving attention on the only person who stood between me and annihilation. There were times I had almost told her about Jim, but the memories of the white hot pain between my legs prevented me from doing so. I knew that Jim hadn't lied about giving me away to men who would cause me more of that pain. I had actually met some of them and they were very interested in me. I knew I wasn't wanted. I didn't know what I had done to be so bad. I did know that Mommy loved me, though. She always touched and hugged me gently. She always listened when I told her things, making me feel important. She was a busy, successful business woman, and was always gone a lot of the time, though. I remember the terror that would rise in me whenever I saw her take out her suitcase. It meant torture for me when she was gone.  
I would hang onto her leg and cry desperately, "Mommy, please don't go. Take me with you. I'll be good, I promise. Take me with you, Mommy."  
"Sunshine, I'll only be gone a few days. I would take you if I could. I'll bring you back a surprise," she placated me.  
I would watch her car drive away in a state of abject desolation, waiting for the violence to begin again. One time she had driven off and I followed her car out onto the street, and stood on the sidewalk. When a car drove up the street towards me, I stepped off the curb into the path of the oncoming vehicle. I don't remember consciously wishing to die, I just wanted to escape the torture. The car missed me by inches and the driver got out and yelled at me. He told me that I was a bad girl for walking out in front of cars. I told him that I was sorry, and slowly walked home, to the house of horrors. With nowhere else to go._

"Isabella couldn't help me in moments of intense physical pain. No splitting of my mind, or fantasy could take away the excruciating pain Jim inflicted upon me. It was only at the ebbing of the intensity, that I could focus and chant to myself, "I'm not here, I'm not here, I'm not here." Isabella was more alive during the trapped, confined times."

_I remember being left tied up with the scarves to my bed again, unable to wriggle free or suck my thumb.  
"Do you see the crack in the ceiling?" Isabella asked.  
"Yeah."  
"Well, if you shrink tiny enough, you can go out that crack with me. Then we can stand on the roof and probably see the park with the swimming pond and swings. Let's go swing really high, Bella!"  
And soon, we were doing just that._

"I had no question about the reality of Isabella. My whole world was crazy. She did not need to make sense, for I treasured her. She was my escape. She could be a separate person, or she could be apart of me. There was very little distinction between our realities in the beginning. We were trapped, and we escaped through our dialogue and imagination, turning into pretend free-flowing beings running away from the boredom of confinement, pain and confusion," I told Carlisle.

He nodded, his pen flying swiftly across the page.

_After securely tying me to the table in the basement, one of Jim's rituals was to take the ice pick and poke me with it until it hurt, but never to puncture the skin.  
"We have to be incredibly fucking careful not to leave marks," he'd say.  
He held the ice pick in front of my eyes, moving it closer and closer, as close as my eyelashes.  
"I want to blind you, Isabella," he told me. "I'll poke out your ugly brown eyes and all the jelly will run down your skin, then you won't be able to see."  
I felt my heart pound against my ribs as I visualized my eyeballs hanging out of their sockets. As I was being frightened, with no escape, the world would go black for me. I could barely breathe in the absolute void of the darkened world of my imagination. I thrashed and squirmed to be free, waiting for the final thrust of the ice pick. Even as a tiny child, I understood the concept of being blind. I would walk around the house with my eyes closed, so that I could get used to being blind. I memorized where everything was in my room, so that when I was blind, I could still find my things. This new terror led to a job for Isabella. I have no explanation for how she began as a pretend playmate and slowly incorporated herself into me, as though we were twins. It was an evolution of pain and imagination…one that I was not conscious of.  
Bobby said, "You were being really stupid last night, Bella. You were walking around with a stick, tapping everything, like that blind man we saw on the beach. When I asked you what you were doing, you said that you were **Isa**-bella, not Bella, and you asked if I could take you outside before you died."_

"Um…I have no memory of doing that. It didn't upset me that I couldn't remember. I was small and just accepted life for what it was. There was no constancy in my life with Jim and there was a lack of it in my mind, also, as I struggled to survive in my world of pain."

**Bella, I wanna go play. Let's not talk about this no more** Isabella suggested.

_Time's not up yet_ I informed her before continuing to soldier on.

I kept my eyes on Mr. Squiggly Line as I steeled my resolve to talk for another thirty fucking minutes. Carlisle didn't say or do much, but write in that damn journal. I ignored it and after running my fingers through my hair and crossing my legs, I continued.

"There were many nightmares, many nights I didn't sleep, nights when physical pain kept me awake, and nights when I lay still, listening to see if Jim would come in to hurt me one more time before I fell asleep. It wasn't until I was a little older that the abstract thoughts of my death played in my mind, wondering how he would kill me and what it would feel like to die. I never remember being afraid of death, but I was afraid of how much pain there was to dying. I lived with pain…it was constantly present. Matches were put out on my skin. My hair was yanked. I got slapped, or hit, or slammed against the wall for the smallest mistakes."

_One day, while I was trying to help set the table, I dropped the cream pitcher and it exploded in a spray of glass and cream. Jim dragged me up to my room and tied me down with those damn scarves again. He left the room and I waited for what seemed like a hundred years for the torture that I knew he was planning for me as he plotted with his angel. Knowing the pain was coming made my mind unable to escape. The focus I had on the pretend, the oblivion, didn't work in the face of anticipated terror. Jim came back in with straight pins…the kind with the tiny balls on the end for sewing projects. As I lay immobilized in my bound position, he took the pins and stuck them through my labia, as though I were a Thanksgiving turkey. I cried and screamed at the piercing pain.  
"I should just give you away, you dirky kike. You're such a bad little girl. Not worth my fucking time. You need purity, Isabella! Cry it out. Fucking scream for me. Get rid of your demons," he demanded in a cold voice.  
He untied me and left the room, with the pins still sticking through my tiny private parts, and the ends of the pins stabbing into my left thigh as I moved. I couldn't see the pins to take them out. I inched across the bed, getting stabbed harder with each move. I waddled to the bathroom mirror, which was full length to the floor. Sitting on the white hexagon tiles, I saw the blood droplets spread across the floor as I pulled the pins out, one at a time. I was crying in loud, hiccupping sobs, but was fascinated at the sight of my red, tear stained face and the sight of the pins sticking through me. That night at dinner, I couldn't eat. I couldn't move when dinner was over. The pain down below was almost too much. I put my head down next to my plate and just sat there. I don't remember what Mommy said to me, but I do remember her scooping me in her arms and carrying me upstairs. She took me to the bathroom and I almost couldn't breathe at the stinging pain when I urinated. I was fighting back the tears as I looked up at Mommy and saw her staring down at the blood on my panties. She said nothing. She carried me to my room and got me dressed in my pajamas. I waited for her to ask me about the blood, but she never did. Instead, she layed down next to me and tickled my back, snuggling with me for a while. Later, while I lay in my bed, unable to sleep from the pain, I heard my mother shouting at Jim, and Jim crying. I hoped they weren't fighting about my being evil.  
"I think he's angry with me because I'm so bad," I whispered to Isabella.  
"No, it's because you're a kike…a dirty Jew," she informed me.  
"How can I not be Jewish anymore?"  
"Just like me, just don't be Jewish. Just decide to be different from what you are. It's easy," she consoled me.  
"For you, everything is easy. You just make up whatever you want to be. Things don't work like that. When you get bigger, you'll understand more."  
I was always the practical one, while Isabella was the escapist. If reality didn't suit her, she'd change it.  
"I didn't mean to break the pitcher. I never mean to do bad things…" I murmured sadly.  
Isabella said, "I don't really think it's just because you weren't careful. When Bobby breaks things, he never gets tied up. It's because Daddy hates you for being Jewish."  
"Why aren't Mommy and Bobby Jewish?"  
"I don't know. I think Mommy knows we're being hurt. That makes me mad. She should take care of us."  
"No! Don't say that. Don't ever say that mommy knows. If she knew, she would take us away. It's because we've never told her."_

"When my mother got angry at Jim, it seemed to only escalate the abuse. The next day I was locked in the basement for a whole day. I was hit and burned several times that week. I remember all this because on that next Sunday, Bobby and I were going to be baptized in the Presbyterian Church. My mom explained how Jim wanted us to be sprinkled with water so that when we died, we would go to heaven. Jim gave Bobby and me several talks about Jesus, heaven, and God, who loved us. When we went, I had to go to the Sunday school room to color and sing songs…"

_I had been in so much pain from an episode with Jim that I just lay on the floor in the corner while all the kids looked at me. The young teacher picked me up and held me in her lap and gave me graham crackers. I remember her silk blouse against my cheek as I looked at the Jesus picture on the wall. Jesus had wavy curls, just like Jim and he had angels, too. But in Sunday school, they told me that Jesus loved the little children. After church, we went to a party at the home of an old lady. I don't know who she was, except that I remember she had saggy eyes, blotches on her skin, and big teeth. She also had a swimming pool. The Sunday lunch party was being held outside and I tried to be very quiet and good. The bruises on my back hurt. I walked over to the deep end of the pool while all the grown-ups talked. Now that I was baptized, I wanted to go to heaven.  
I remembered the nice Sunday school teacher singing, "Jesus loves the little children…all the children of the world…"  
I knew my daddy, Jim, didn't love me. Maybe Jesus would want me. With my hair in pretty ribbons, a church dress, and Mary Jane shoes on, I stepped off the edge of the pool into the deep end. I don't remember fear. Just sinking down and down, turning and seeing my blue dress float around my neck. I took in a breath of water - I was going to visit Jesus. My mother dove into the water with all her clothes on and rescued me. I came up coughing and choking. I was laid out on the side of the pool as Mommy desperately pressed the water from my lungs while tears streamed down her face. Instead of comforting me, she stood up, turned me over her knee and started spanking me. That was the only spanking my mother ever gave me. All the way home in my wet clothes, I sucked my thumb. Mommy was angry with me, Daddy hated me, and even Jesus didn't want me._

I looked at the clock and noticed there was fifteen minutes left.

**I want my Edward…** Isabella said.

**Yeah, let's blow this joint, Bell. I don't want to hear about this shit anymore** Marie piped in.

_We have to do this guys…I know it sucks, but please quit giving me crap about it. I love you. You're not going anywhere. No matter what they say…alright?_

**Kay** Isabella said.

**Alright, doll** Marie relented.

"Bella, you're making a lot of progress today," Carlisle informed me with an encouraging smile.

I laughed nervously and sniffled. "Um…thanks."

"Can you go a little longer?" he asked, intrigued with my stories.

I nodded and decided to tell him about my good ol' granny. My _real_ dad's mom. Those were some good times…

I smiled.

Carlisle smiled back.

I began my tale.

"In the fall, when I was five, a _very_ good and happy thing happened. You see, because my birthday is near the school's beginning date, there was a discussion as to whether I could start kindergarten. I remember the sense of dreaded doom I felt at the grown-up's decision that I should stay home another year because I was so tiny and skinny. It just meant more pain…more basement time. But…"

_My mother took Jim on a two-week vacation, leaving me with my Granny Hadassah. She was a twinkle-eyed round woman with big breasts and a halo of snow-white curls around her face. She had come to see me on occasion, but I didn't really know her very well. Jim didn't like her because she was a Jew. I was very intrigued at what she and I possessed, or had in common, that would make us both so undesirable. I hoped she didn't know that I was bad. I worried about how she would hurt me. I resolved to be very good and very quiet. It only took a few hours with my granny to realize that we were going to have a lot of fun. She giggled and had a tea party with me and some dollies. She didn't yell at me when I laughed. She didn't even yank my thumb out of my mouth when I sucked on it. She liked me. Those two weeks were bliss for me. I got to curl up on Granny's lap and hear old Jewish stories and tales of Germany where she had grown up. We baked cookies together and she taught me silly, funny songs. She showed me how to play cards. We took lotts of walks to the park, for daily exercise, and I collected pretty autumn leaves and rolled holly berries along the side walk. Bedtime was my favorite, though. Granny would lie on the bed with me and gently stroke my hair and sing me pretty lullabies in her soft voice. She told me that she thought I was a lovely, wonderful little girl. We whispered our secrets to each other and she rubbed her nose against mine.  
"It's Eskimo kissing," she told me.  
It was two weeks of paradise. I wasn't hurt, not even once, and there was never any basement time. Even Isabella, who didn't like anyone, loved Granny Hadassah. We always argued as to who would get to sit in her lap for story time. I was upset when my parents came home. I felt like my heart was breaking as my mother escorted my dear old granny out to her car. She kissed the tears dripping from my eyes and Eskimo-kissed me goodbye. I squeezed her as hard as I could, hoping that she would know how intensely I loved her._

"That's very special," Carlisle told me with a gentle smile.

I nodded. "Yes…Granny was very special."

"Anyway, later on that year, at the Halloween festival at Bobby's elementary school, we won little goldfish with the ping-pong balls that landed in the bowls. Bobby and me brought home our three fish and were very pleased with our new pets…"

_Jim took the little bags from my hands and dumped our fish onto the kitchen floor. He stepped on them, squashing them flat.  
"We must not let things suffer," he chanted with a glazed look in his eyes. That statement made absolutely no sense to me, as I cried and mourned for my little fish. Isabella could lividly express the anger that I never allowed myself to feel.  
"I hate Daddy! He had no reason to kill our fishies. He has no reason to hurt us at all!"  
"Shh, be quiet Isabella. If you do something, you'll only make him madder."  
"I don't care!" she screamed petulantly and stomped her foot.  
She took the little smashed fish and smeared their guts all across the kitchen counter. She was bad, but I was the one who got thrown down and kicked._

"Hmm…" Carlisle hummed. "That seems to be a pattern with your alternates, Bella…" he trailed off suggestively.

"Yeah, I know. They get all angry and lash out, but leave me to deal with the consequences."

He nodded, agreeing with me.

"Lovely, isn't it?" I asked, sarcasm laced in my tone.

He sighed, and turned the page. "Go on, dear…"

I looked at the clock. Seven minutes.

"Okay, well then there was the death of my very best friend…"

"For Christmas that year, I remember being excited and thrilled with the new antique doll that my Granny Hadassah had sent me. It was almost as tall as I was, with a porcelain painted face and real brown hair that curled, just like mine. It had a lace dress and little buckle shoes. I loved that fucking doll. I named her Emily and kept her next to my bed. In my loneliness for regular playmates, I played with her as though she were my real friend…"

_One day, when Jim was angry with me, he tied me to a wooden chair in my room, took a hammer and brutally smashed in Emily's face.  
"I want to do this to your face. Then you won't be so pretty anymore, and I won't have to hear that incessant fucking laughter coming out of your dirty little mouth all the goddamn time," he told me.  
I sobbed as Emily lay in chunks of china bisque on my floor. The brown glass eyes, that mirrored my own, still had the eyelashes attached as they gazed up at me from the floor. Jim took Emily and threw her in the trash, leaving me bound to a chair in my room to mourn. Mom asked me what had happened to Emily and I told her that I broke her. My fear of Jim far outweighed my mother's displeasure.  
"You were wrong to not take care of your expensive doll, especially since your granny gave it to you," Mom scolded me.  
"I'm sorry, Mommy."  
Bobby had lotts of toys and trucks and I got to play with them, but it wasn't the same as having my very own toys and playthings. Pooh bear had become very important after Emily had been destroyed. I used to talk to Pooh, and tell him where I hurt and what I was afraid of. I played pretend games with Pooh and slept with him at night. I must have been about six, when Jim took him from me and stabbed him with a butcher knife, slitting out the stuffing of his belly, puncturing his arms and legs before cutting his face to shreds. In my child's mind, it was downright murder that he was committing. Isabella screamed and cried, while I sobbed right along with her. Pooh was vividly alive to me, and now he was dead. I took his eyes out of the waste basket and hid them under my pillow. I kept the eyes of my dead friend for years to come, putting them in secret hiding places. I only had Bobby, mom, and Isabella.  
She became more real after Pooh was killed._

**I miss Pooh bear…** Isabella whined

_Yeah, me too._

**I want my Edward** Isabella told me in a pitifully small voice.

**Yeah, yeah, kid…we heard ya the first fucking time** Marie informed her.

I sighed and felt a tear drop roll down my eye. I was feeling Isabella's pain of loss for our best friends back in the day.

Poor Emily.

Poor Pooh bear.

**Aw, not you too! Bell, c'mon…this is fucking depressing. And I don't feel good. So you two just…fucking _quit_ with all the boo-hoo'in already Marie** demanded of us.

**_You_ weren't there, so you don't know!** Isabella piped up, defending our pain.

**Whatever** Marie retorted.

I sighed and tried to block out their arguing. I wiped my eyes and glanced over at the clock as Carlisle was closing his book.

"So, Bella…"

CPOV

Bella sniffled and said, "Huh-uh."

"Bella?"

"Want my Edward…" came her small voice.

Realization dawn on me that she had abruptly switched to Isabella just as Edward had opened the door to my study. He quickly walked right over to her and without breaking his stride, lifted her out of the leather chair that she was sitting in.

"C'mere baby girl," he said softly while she gripped onto his neck and wrapped her legs around his waist.

She sniffled and nuzzled her face into his neck. "My friends, Edward…he killed 'em," she informed him pitifully, as she began to cry.

He swayed slowly from side to side while he held her in his arms. The sight reminded me very much of a father comforting his child, ironically.

He softly rubbed soothing circles into her back and shushed her. "I know, angel…" he murmured sadly while giving me a look of slight confusion.

_She's reliving those memories_ I thought to him.

He nodded to me then, and turned on his heel, quickly walking out of the room. While I felt great sympathy for Bella and Isabella at the moment, I couldn't help the smile that lit up my face as I looked over all the pages of material I had gotten out of Bella today.

Her therapy was progressing quickly, as she seemed to talk non-stop, from the moment she sits down, to the moment time is up. Yesterday, she even ran an hour over time. I grew excited as I thought of when I would be able to further counsel Isabella and Marie, personally. But as of right now, we are just scratching the surface of Isabella, and hadn't really even begun with Marie yet. I knew that, with time, I would definitely be able to help our Bella get well.


	30. Never Never Land & Time Outs

EPOV

While sitting by the door to Carlisle's study this morning, I learned a lot about my Bella.

She would want to avoid celebrating the Fourth of July at all costs. She was suicidal as a child. Her mother is a neglectful whore. A _stupid_, neglectful fucking whore. She loves those Eskimo kisses so much because they remind her of her grandmother. Isabella enjoys them as well. Isabella expressed Bella's anger as a child, lashing out, but then left Bella to deal with the results…her and Marie have that in common. I could add her fear of going blind to my list that already consisted of her fears of angels, needles, being cooked and eaten, being drowned to death, and losing her fingers. And her two friends were brutally destroyed right before her eyes.

Fucking. Traumatizing.

_And this is only the beginning._

"Want my Edward…"

_Isabella._

Without thinking, I stood from the ground and opened the door that separated me from my little girl. I strode right over to her and plucked her right out of that chair, then brought her to my chest.

"C'mere, baby girl…" I said softly as she wrapped her legs around my waist.

"My friends, Edward…Daddy killed 'em," she told me in a sad voice before she began to quietly cry.

She nuzzled my neck, trying to hide her face from Carlisle.

"I know, angel," I said and tightened my hold on her.

I looked to Carlisle, unsure if Isabella was actually reliving the things of the past, or if she was just mourning the loss of her old playmates.

Again.

_She's reliving those memories_ he thought at me.

I just nodded and turned to walk out of the room with Isabella in my arms. She needed me. I was going to make it better…kiss her all better. I had to.

I clenched my jaw at the smell of her tears and kept a tight, comforting hold on her as I walked through the house. I made a pit stop by the kitchen, grabbing a blow pop and one of her bottles of water with a sport top. I walked up the stairs then, keeping one arm under Isabella and holding the water and candy in my other hand.

Once we were in our bedroom, I sat her down on the bed. I kissed her forehead, checking for a fever, then quickly grabbed her 'Little Angel' blanket out of the closet, and snatched her doll up from off the floor. When I made my way back over to my sad angel, still sitting on the edge of the bed, sniffling and sucking on those pretty lips, I was prepared.

I was armed with a lolly, a suckable water bottle, her blankie, and her baby dolly.

I sighed and gritted my teeth at the sight of those wet tears streaming down her rosy cheeks. I held the items out to her, not wanting to waste anymore time.

"Here, sweetheart," I said in offering.

She wiped at her eyes with her fists, then looked up at me. Her watery gaze and beautifully flushed face looked so lost and heartbroken, that it started to break my own heart and fill my chest with even more anxiety.

She sniffled. "Ed-ward…" then hiccupped.

"Yes, baby?" I asked softly.

_Tell me what you need…_

"Want _you_," she proclaimed as another tear slid out of her eyes.

I nodded and tossed the useless crap onto the bed. I picked her back up, filled with foolish pride that she preferred me to one of her beloved lollipops, and relished in her scent and warmth as she clung to me.

I gently rubbed her back while simultaneously reaching for her pink blanket on the bed to put it over her bare shoulders. Once I had it draped across her back, I brought my arm out from under her and smoothed the blanket down her back, before placing my arm back under her. I tucked the soft blanket around her bare shoulders, making sure she was at least bundled up if she insisted on clinging to my cold body in that ridiculously skimpy sundress.

I held her to me and started with the pacing. It was surprising how many times I had paced this floor in just this week alone. She was starting to calm down fairly quickly now. Her cries had stopped, her breathing had evened out, and her body was relaxing under my touch.

Her head was laying on my shoulder and I felt her small fingers start to twirl the hair at the nape of my neck before she spoke with her mouth right next to my ear.

"Edward?" she asked, voice weak and soft.

"Yes, baby?"

"Did Pooh bear go to heaven?" she asked curiously.

I turned on my heel and started back the direction we had just come from.

"Mm-hmm…" I hummed in response.

"But, what about Emily?"

"She's there too," I placated her.

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

"Do kikes get to go to heaven?"

"What word did I say to use instead of 'kike', angel?" I asked her with a soft warning pat to her bottom.

"Um, Jewish…" she answered hesitantly.

I nodded.

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"I hope not, b'cuz I don't wanna go to heaven," she informed me softly.

"Why not, baby girl?"

"I don't like angels, and I heard there was lotts of 'em there."

"Oh…" I said quietly.

Before I could begin the very complicated process of explaining that those kinds of angels aren't mean and bad, according to the Christian religion, she piped up with, "I'd rather go to Never Never Land."

I chuckled. "Oh, really? Is that so?"

She lifted her head from my shoulder and showed me the small smile on her beautiful face. My tense shoulders relaxed at the sight of it.

"Uh-huh, yeah," she nodded. "And you could come with me, and we could go on a top-secret mission to save my Pooh bear and Emily dolly from that heaven place with all the stupid scary angels," she told me.

She had obviously planned this out.

"Sounds like a plan, baby girl. I'd go anywhere with you," I assured her, punctuating my statement with a famous Eskimo kiss.

She nodded and her smile grew a little bigger as we gently rubbed noses. A small giggle escaped her lips, and it was ridiculous how all of that horrible anxiety drained out of my body at the sound of it.

I fucking love the sounds of her laughter.

"When we go to save 'em, we can wear all black stuff and be really sneaky…"

"Super sneaky," I said with a nod.

"Yeah, and then we could go to Never Never Land and have bunches of fun, huh…" she said wistfully.

"Bunches," I agreed.

"And I would already fit in with all of the lost boys and we could be bestest friends with Peter Pan. We can learn how to fly too, huh Edward?" she said excitedly, getting lost in her game of imagination.

"Yes baby, we would have fun and learn to fly…but how would you already fit in? Don't you have to make friends first?" I asked softly.

She shook her head a bit and rolled her eyes in the most adorable way. "No, silly," she said with a smile. "I'm already like them, 'cept that I'm a girl," she informed me, as if it should have been obvious.

"How are you like them?" I asked curiously.

"I'm already little forever, Edward," she informed with a delicate shrug.

I furrowed my brow.

"I can't grow up," she added lightly, clarifying her statement for me.

_Really should have seen that one comin, Cullen._

I gave a little gasp of surprise, playing along, and quickly agreed. "That's right, huh?" I asked with a small smirk.

Her adorable smile grew wider. "Yesss, and Peter Pan is gonna love me, huh? He'll sprinkle pretty sparkle dust on me and teach me how to fly with Tinker Bell…"

"Lotts of pretty sparkle dust," I added lightly.

"And me and Tinker Bell can be bestest friends, too!" she said brightly.

"Will you introduce us?" I asked.

"Yah-huh Edward, b'cuz you're mine, so she'll like you too," she assured me.

"Okay."

"Don't worry tho', b'cuz I'll always love _you_ the bestest," she said seriously.

I gave her another Eskimo kiss for that adorable comment.

"And then what?" I asked in an intrigued whisper.

"And then, Tinker Bell can meet my Pooh bear and Emily dolly, and then they will be friends too," she said simply.

I stopped pacing then, and started tickling her sides. She giggled and laughed while she clung to me.

I nuzzled her neck softly. "Yes, and then we will have fun in Never Never Land forever and ever and ever," I assured her over the peals of giggles that filled the room.

When she was breathless from laughing, I stopped and hugged her to me, relieved that she wasn't sad anymore and that those wretched tears had stopped.

She took a deep breath and hummed it out, hugging me back. "Hmmm…love you, Edward," she said, then kissed my cheek.

I kissed her cheek in return and gave her another small squeeze before relaxing my grip and resumed my pacing.

"I love you too, Isabella," I told her in an almost reverent tone.

"You're mine," she whispered to me once her head was back on my shoulder.

I softly trailed my fingers along her spine. "And you are mine."

She kissed my cheek again. "Love you."

"I love you, too."

"I love you more."

I smiled and subtly shook my head. "No…I love you more," I assured her.

She giggled. "Huh-uh, I love you more."

"I love you more."

"Mm-mm, I love you more."

"I love you more," I countered, enjoying this new game.

"I love _you_ more," she insisted.

"I love you more, times _infinity_," I said, feeling slightly smug that she couldn't top that.

She lifted her head then, and looked me dead in the eye, her amusement shining through her chocolate eyes. "I love you more, times infinity…_and beyond_," she stated proudly, before giving me a smug grin of her own.

I chuckled. "Where did you learn that?"

A laugh escaped her lips. "Toy Story…" she informed me sheepishly.

I tickled her sides again. "Silly girl."

She laughed. "I win!" She looked so proud of herself.

I laughed with her, then relented and said, "Yeah, okay…you win, baby. But only 'cause you're so smart and pretty."

She latched her arms around my neck again, giving me another one of my favorite hugs.

When we relaxed back into the silence of the room, I whispered very quietly, "But, I love you more."

I felt her smile against my neck before she whispered back, "I love you more."

Ten minutes later, Isabella and I were on the bed watching Shrek. After our 'I Love You' game, I had gotten a warm wash cloth and gently wiped her tear-stained face for her. She smiled at me in appreciation before sticking that blow pop in her mouth. After throwing the cloth in the hamper, I put on Shrek at her request, then joined her and her doll on the bed.

"Edward, want some of my blankie?" she asked sweetly, from her spot beside me.

She held up the side of her microplush blanket, inviting me to use some of it, but I shook my head. She was in that little sundress and was getting over being sick with a cold. She needed to keep warm.

I kissed her forehead. "No, but thanks for asking sweetheart."

She nodded, then turned her attention back to her doll that lay in her lap. Apparently, it was feeding time, because she had that plastic bottle pressed to the doll's mouth for the past two minutes.

She took the blow pop out of her mouth and held it's stick in her hand. "Edward?"

"Yes, baby?"

"Can you tell me when three minutes is over?"

"Why?" I asked curiously.

"B'cuz that's when Haley will be done with lunch," she informed me.

"Is that your doll's name? Haley?"

"Yah-huh, she's my baby dolly Haley," she stated proudly.

I nodded. "Pretty name…"

She looked to me and smiled. "Yeah."

"I got my baby Haley and my Ariel dolly," she told me before shrugging and saying, "but no teddies yet…"

"Do you want a teddy bear, sweetheart?"

_Cause I can go to the store right now and buy you the biggest one they got._

She nodded slowly, and turned her focus back to her doll. "Yeah…but Edward?"

"Yes, Isabella?"

"He's gotta be brown and soft, so that I can name him Fuzzy bear," she told me seriously.

I chuckled lightly. "Of course…"

"And Edward?"

"Yeah?"

She looked at me nervously now.

I furrowed my brow.

_What's wrong?_

"You gotta protect him like you protect me. And my baby Haley. And my Ariel dolly," she cautioned me before pointing out, "You never let nobody give us any owwies. You keep Daddy and the scary angels away."

I nodded. "Always," I assured her.

"And…when my Fuzzy bear comes to live with me, you can't let no one hurt him either," she told me.

"I won't let anyone hurt you…or your toys, baby," I told her with conviction.

_I'll fucking kill the bastard that tries to take your teddy away from you._

And I would.

She nodded then looked back down at her doll.

"Three minutes is over, sweetheart," I informed her.

"Kay."

She took the bottle away from her doll's mouth and put it back in the accessory bag. Then she brought the doll to her chest and gave it a quick hug before hopping down off the bed and putting the doll back in the plastic basinet on the floor. I watched as she covered the doll with it's small blanket…tucking it in for a nap, apparently.

She kissed it's forehead, then whispered, "Love you, Haley. My Edward won't let nobody hurt us…don't worry 'bout it no more."

Then she stood from the floor, grabbed her MagnaDoodle off the desk, and came back to the bed. She crawled back over to me and smiled, before sitting in the V shape between my legs and snuggling into my chest. I lightly wrapped my arm around her and kissed her hair, before breathing in the delicious scent of her. She stuck her blow pop back in her mouth and started to doodle on the toy that lay on her lap.

While Isabella doodled and watched the movie, Alice called and told me that she knew where the perfect teddy bear was and that she would pick it up on her way home from shopping this afternoon. She was at the mall with Rosalie in Port Angeles, and I guessed that she would probably just grab one from the toy store while she was there. I thanked her and hung up.

Isabella set her MagnaDoodle aside and popped open her water bottle. She took a few drinks and twirled her hair while keeping her eyes on the TV screen, entranced by the movie, Shrek...where the ogre was on a quest to save the princess from the evil dragon who had a crush on the donkey.

Isabella giggle., "Edward, Donkey is funny…"

I smiled. "I know it, baby."

"And he's a _talking_ donkey…" she said with amusement.

I squeezed her waist closer to me and whispered in her ear, "A _magical_, talking donkey."

She nodded and smiled. "Mm-hmm…magical. And the princess is an ogre, like Shrek!" she informed me.

"Yes, I know…that was a surprise, huh?"

"A pretty surprise, b'cuz now they can be in love, huh?"

I kissed her cheek. "Yes."

The movie was almost over now, and her stomach was starting to growl. I noticed the time was 1pm, so it would be time for some more cold medicine, also. As if on queue, Isabella sniffled.

"How do you feel, baby?" I asked in concern, then put my lips to her forehead.

She had a slight fever now.

_Damn it._

She shrugged. "Hungry…"

"Mm-hmm, what would you like for lunch?"

She was silent for a minute, thinking about her options. I mean, it was obviously a very crucial decision.

"Um…peanut butter and jelly and teddy crackers and a apple and some lollies and chocolate and then some icecream then for desert I can have a freezie pop," she finished with a smile.

I chuckled, knowing she'd never be able to eat all of that. "Wow…that's quite a feast," I told her.

She nodded. "Uh-huh."

"You must be pretty hungry…" I trailed off suggestively.

"Mm-hmm, yeah…pretty hungry," she agreed, never taking her eyes off the screen.

I kissed her temple then, reminding me of her slight fever, and told her it was time for lunch. She readily agreed, and hopped down from the bed. I turned the movie off, and we went downstairs to the kitchen. When we got there, she wanted to sit on the counter and watch me make her lunch.

I would be making her remaining meals today because Esme was out hunting with Emmett. And after Bella's therapy session with Carlisle this morning, he went in to the hospital to work a shift, so it was just me and my angel alone in the house for the afternoon.

I decided that she should take her medicine before she eats, instead of after this time. That fever was making me nervous. I knew she was fine…just some sniffles, but I couldn't help my overprotective nature and tendency to worry about _everything_ that had to do with my girl.

I opened the cabinet and grabbed her Tylenol cold medicine. I noticed and saw how she scowled at the small bottle when I opened it and filled the little cup to it's correct measurement.

Placing it by her leg on the counter, I told her, "Take your medicine, baby."

I didn't watch her like a hawk to make sure she took it. I was giving her room to do it on her own…I was trying to show her that I trusted her to take it. So, after putting the bottle back in the cabinet above her, I turned around and got to work on this lunch business.

I started on this weird thing called, The Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich. Which, from what I understand, only requires some peanut butter on one slice of bread, then…some strawberry jelly on another slice of bread. Then, you just smash them together.

_Right?_

I peeked over at Isabella. I knew that I'd be able to tell from her facial expression whether I was doing this right or not. I saw a smile, so I guess I was good to go. Next would be the apple. She still had some slices left over from Thursday, so I got the Ziploc bag of them out of the fridge and took out three, then put them on the plate next to that sandwich. I grabbed the box of cinnamon Teddy Grahams and scooped out a small handful, then put those on the plate as well, in between the sandwich and the apple slices.

_Perfect._

I smiled down at the plate, proof that I could cook and feed my little girl when she needed me to. Bella and Marie could cook and make their own food, but Isabella _needed_ me. She depended on me for everything.

I grabbed the plate and turned back around to face Isabella, only to see a still full cup of cold medicine, sitting by her leg. I turned back around and put the plate back down on the counter. When I turned around, yet again, I glared at the cup before drifting my eyes over to Isabella.

She was looking out the window and her bare feet were lazily kicking out in front of her, making a soft _thump-thump_ noise on the cabinets below.

"Edward?" she said, then turned to look my way, only to find that I was already looking at her.

"Yeah?"

"After lunch, can I go play outside?"

"That's depends…" I hedged.

"On what?" she asked curiously.

"You need to take your medicine. You have a slight fever baby, and you're not going to be playing outside at all until it goes away."

"But I wanna play…" she insisted.

I nodded. "Okay, so then take your medicine, angel."

"It's ucky," she informed me with an adorably scrunched up nose.

"I know, but you still have to take it," I insisted.

"Mm-mm," she said with a shake of her head.

I sighed. "Isabella?"

"Yeah?"

"What is your rule about listening and doing what your told?" I asked conversationally.

She shrugged. "That I'm sposta."

"And what did I just tell you to do?" I asked, keeping my tone light.

"Take my medicine."

"So then, why aren't you taking your medicine?" I asked curiously.

"B'cuz it's ucky," she told me with a nod.

I glanced at the medicine cup, then looked back to her face. "Are you breaking a rule right now?"

She slightly cocked her head to the side, as if to think about it. "Probably…" she hedged.

"Isabella, do you want to be in trouble?"

"No," she told me with a shake of her head.

"Well, baby…then I think you need to just take your medicine, like a good girl," I suggested, before pointing out, "otherwise, you'd be breaking a rule, and then you'd be in trouble."

She took a deep breath and sighed, "Hmmm…"

"And being in trouble's no fun, huh?" I asked lightly.

She shook her head again, her bare feet still kicking out lazily. "Nope…no fun at all," she agreed.

"So what's it gonna be, angel?" I asked, hoping that she would make the right decision.

"Um…" she squinted her eyes, then asked, "Can I think about it over lunch?"

_Jesus Christ, this is not a fucking business deal, Cullen. Stop treating it like one._

I shook my head. "Afraid not, baby. How about you think about it while you're in time out?"

She gasped. "No!"

"Take the medicine," I told her firmly, serious now.

She had a desperate look on her face now. The entire mood of the room had shifted when the words 'time out' had been spoken.

"Edward, no time out…" she whined.

I decided to be lenient and ignore that whine.

"Just take your medicine," I repeated, offering her a Get Out Of Trouble Free card.

"But, Edward it's ucky and I don't feel good and I don't want a time out and I'll-" she said in a rushed, whiny voice before I lifted her off the counter and put her back down on the ground.

"Too late now," I told her.

Then she started to cry. Hard. There may have been some screams too.

_Woah…_

What's there to cry about? To get so worked up over?

I swear to Christ, all the tears came out of nowhere and she was immediately sobbing. I stood there for a second, getting over the shock of her instant change in demeanor, before I gently squeezed her hand in reassurance then let go of it, putting a few steps in between us.

_Right…she broke a rule. You gave her chances. Stay fucking firm._

"Isabella…" I spoke, cringing over her cries.

She looked up at me then, and I had to steel myself to stay still in my spot and not go to her and envelop her in my arms and shush her and give her kisses and tickle her…like my instincts were telling me to.

I gritted my teeth.

_Stop crying, stop screaming, stop sobbing…please._

"Isabella, if you didn't want to be in trouble, then you should have just taken your medicine. I gave you plenty of chances to," I pointed out while she rubbed a fist on her eye and hiccupped a sob.

She nodded in agreement, so I went on.

"After your time out, you _will_ take your medicine, young lady. And then you can eat your lunch," I told her firmly, but gently…gently, but firmly.

_It's all about finding that balance._

I walked back over to her then, and took her hand in mine, leading her into the dining room.

All the way there, she was saying how fucking sorry she was, and it made my resolve waver six times, before I reminded myself that it truly wasn't that big of a deal, and she shouldn't be this ridiculously worked up.

_I mean come the fuck on…_

She was going to sit. In a chair. For five minutes.

Not exactly something to scream about.

"Ed-ward, I'm s-ss-sorrrry…" she cried out, then hiccupped.

"Well baby, you know…maybe next time, when I tell you to do something, you'll do it," I said softly.

"But, Ed-waaaard…" she hiccupped and wiped her eye. "I can take my medicine now."

I grabbed a chair and turned it sideways. I told her to sit in it, then I sat in a chair beside it, turning it to face her. I needed to make my point clear, before her punishment began.

When I had eye contact with her, I spoke over her cries. "Isabella, it doesn't work like that. You need to listen and do what you're told, when you're told, not when it's too late and you've already willingly broken the rule and are facing punishment for it. Do you understand?"

She sniffled and nodded.

I gave her a hard look, silently telling her that I wanted an actual answer.

"Y-Yesss…" she sobbed out.

_Fucking hell, she's reacting worse to this than that spanking yesterday._

I nodded, then said in a calm, but firm voice, "You stay here. In this chair. You don't play with anything, you don't run your fingers along the table top, or tap your fingers on it. Stay in this chair, and stay still. I will let you know when you can get up. Alright?"

She nodded through her cries, and I stood from my chair then, pushing it back in place by the table. Isabella's chair was positioned so that she would see nothing but the boring white wall in front of her. I went to the other side of the room, behind her and stayed silent, keeping my eye on the clock and watching Isabella.

She didn't know that I could see her, and she probably thought that I had left her in the room alone. I watched and cringed for the first two minutes while she sat in the chair and cried. She just cried…and cried…and fucking cried some more. It seemed like forever, but when I checked the clock, it had only been two minutes.

_Three minutes left._

She brought her knees up to her chest then, and wiped her wet face on the bottom off her dress, sniffling and gasping for breath as her sobs quieted down. She wrapped her arms around her shins and placed her cheek on her knees, then subtly rocked back and forth.

_Two minutes left._

The room was silent now. Almost too silent. Deafeningly silent. I focused on Isabella's heart beats to give my mind a distraction.

She sniffled. "Edward…?"

"No talking," I said from my position behind her, causing her to jump a bit.

She lifted her head from her knee and turned to look at me.

"Eyes forward, Isabella," I said firmly, before raising my eyebrows and pointing to the boring white wall. "On that wall."

She turned her head back around and looked at the wall, starting to cry again.

I looked at the clock.

_One minute left._

My thoughts drifted back and I began to wonder again what the big deal about a time-out was. I mean, she's not being hurt…or deprived of anything. She's just sitting there.

_I don't understand._

It was frustrating me, because I wanted to know anything and everything about my Bella. Even why her alternate, Isabella, reacted so strongly to having to sit still in a chair for five minutes.

I wanted to know.

No, I _needed_ to know.

It made me realize then, that this entire past week, I had been craving knowledge on my girls…wanting to know every single little detail, no matter how small or insignificant. It was never insignificant to me.

This right here? This…was my new mystery. And I intended to solve it.

"You can get up now," I told her, my voice calm and soft now.

She slightly jumped again at the sound of my voice and immediately stood from the chair. She turned around and looked at me, staying silent and in her spot.

"Come here."

She walked over to me, stopping when we were only inches apart. She wasn't crying anymore, but her face was flushed and she needed to blow her nose.

_Aw. That adorable little button nose…_

I kissed it, then looked at her with a small smile.

She sniffled and kept her wide gaze on mine. I could smell the tang of adrenaline, now.

_What, why?_

This only confused me more, adding to my mystery.

"Isabella, why were you in time out, baby?" I asked her lightly…conversationally, and keeping our eye contact.

I heard on this parenting show, Nanny 911, the other night while Isabella was sleeping, that you should point out to the child why they are in trouble before and after the punishment, so that it sticks in their mind and they remember and don't do it again and blah blah blah…

_Worth a try, right?_

"B'cuz I broke a rule…" her voice was pitched high, like she was fixing to cry again.

I nodded. "And…what rule would that be, angel?"

"B'cuz I didn't take my medicine when I was spostoo…" she said thickly and started sucking on her pretty, pouty lips.

Bottom then top.

Top then bottom.

Back and forth.

I squinted my eyes at her lips, then looked back into her eyes. "Are you ready to take your medicine now?" I asked gently.

She furrowed her brow at my question, looking slightly confused, but also looking like she was relaxing at the same time. Her adrenaline was also fading. She nodded silently a minute later.

I took her hand then and kissed her forehead, checking for that damn fever, to find that, yes…she still had it.

I led her back into the kitchen and handed her a few tissues. After she blew her nose and wiped her eyes, I grabbed the medicine cup off the counter and handed it to her. She stared at me for a few seconds before hesitantly taking the cup from my hand and putting it to her lips. She squeezed her eyes closed, then tipped the cup back and swallowed quickly, no doubt trying to avoid the 'ucky' taste of it all as much as possible. She opened her eyes and handed me back the cup, so that I could rinse it out and put it back in the cabinet with the medicine bottle.

I lightly ran my hand through her long hair, then reached for her plate of food.

"Go back to the table baby, it's lunch time."

She eyed the plate with a small smile, then turned and walked back toward the dining room.

I grabbed a cold juice box out of the fridge, then followed Isabella out to the dining room. I set her plate and drink down in front of her, then sat down across from her, so that I could ask my questions.

I watched and waited until she had finished half of that weird sandwich that I had made for her, before I spoke.

"Isabella, are you scared?" I asked curiously.

She shook her head and swallowed. "No."

"Were you scared a minute ago?" I asked, thinking of when I had picked up her adrenaline in her scent.

"Yeah."

"Why, baby?"

She shrugged, then munched on an apple slice, smiling at the sweet taste of it.

When she swallowed, she said, "Time out is scary, Edward," then looked up from her plate, and into my eyes.

"Why's it scary?"

"B'cuz you gotta stay still for a really long time with owwies…" she trailed off then, putting three teddy grahams in her mouth.

I furrowed my brow, slightly confused. "Do you have any owwies? Was that a really long time?"

She shook her head, "Mm-mm, no…"

"Then why were you so upset?"

"Don't like bein in trouble, Edward," she informed me.

I nodded. "I know…it's no fun, huh?" I said sympathetically.

"Nope, and Daddy always gives me owwies in time-out," she told me.

There it is, ladies and gentlemen…mystery solved. It always comes back to that schitzed out asshole, Jim.

And I am fucking sick of it.

"Sweetheart, what you just did was a _real_ time out. And it doesn't involve owwies. Of any kind. At all," I informed her.

She nodded and took a sip of her juice.

I was almost afraid to ask, but I had to know. My craving for knowledge on everything about her far outweighed my hesitance with this question.

"What happens in time outs, Isabella?"

She swallowed some sandwich, and said, "When I gotta go in time-out, the purity knife comes out."

_Well, fuck._

_

* * *

_

A/N:

Poor Edward. That's all I have to say...poor Edward.


	31. Unstable Emotions

EPOV

Well, now I know why she freaked out on me. I am a little frustrated though, because I made it very clear to her that I didn't have any goddamn purity knives. Does she not completely trust me yet? It is still fairly early in our relationship…

_Oh well._

Trust will take time with my little one, and I can only hope that through my chosen methods of discipline for her, she will soon come to realize that she doesn't have to be so damn scared all the time.

I spanked her yesterday, and now that I think about it, it was almost as if she was expecting something worse, then, as well. I was finished after five quick swats, yet she still lay across my lap…crying and waiting for more. I had to pick her up and hold her to me to get her to realize that it was over and that she was forgiven. After that, she seemed to relax and even fell asleep for a nap, allowing me to leave for a much needed hunting trip.

But…maybe there is something good that can come out of all of this.

Every time that I have to correct her behavior, it can turn into a positive experience in the end, when she realizes that she made it through her punishment unscathed. No cuts, no burns, no piercing of fucking _anything_, and no sexual abuse.

So, everytime that she gets her little butt into trouble in the future, and the inevitable tears begin to fall and that pitiful pleading starts, I'll just stay focused on that little fact…about how my consistency will have a positive effect in the end. It'll just serve to power my resolve and give me some of that damn will power that I am lacking at the moment, because Lord knows I fucking need it. As of right now, I can't even imagine having to spank her again.

But…I'm not stupid and I know that my hope of her never needing it again is very unrealistic. It hasn't even been a week yet, and she is still learning and still testing me at every turn, which is completely normal. It is expected of her right now…testing limits is a common way for children to learn where their boundaries lie. I mean, even _I_ know that. So during this period of time, I just have to ride it out…let her do her thing while I do my part in this relationship and stay firm and fucking consistent, providing her with a sense of security and unconditional love.

I don't know…maybe there will be a time when I can retire my 'stern-face' with her, but I know that the time is definitely not anywhere in the near future. Isabella is a very stubborn girl, really only just beginning to display the odd behaviors of an abused child. And she finds absolutely nothing wrong with broadcasting her learned, but ignorant prejudices without a second thought to the possible consequences. It would also appear that she is a very mischievous little girl…and a very capable liar. These facts worry me and cause me to feel more like a new father every damn day.

As I sit and watch Isabella finish her lunch, I can't help but notice the subtle sense of relief that she is still displaying, at making it out of the first time out I had given her unharmed. Seeing her relief, gives me relief, but at the same time, it also concerns me.

I mean, if she's always expecting a greater punishment then the ones I give her, will she eventually think that I am going easy on her? When, in fact, all I am doing is refraining from abusing her.

But I am also relieved because I know that with time and trust, she will come to realize that she has nothing to fear with me…and that I would never hurt her.

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

She held out her last apple slice to me in offering.

"You eat it…"

I shook my head. "No, Isabella. You eat it."

She cocked her head to the side a bit, still holding out the apple to me. "But what will you eat?" she asked curiously.

"I'll be fine, baby girl. I'm not hungry," I assured her.

She shook her head. "Me either, Edward. I'm full. My tummy's gonna burst if I eat it," she informed me matter-of-factly.

I looked down at her plate, only to find that she had finished ¾ of that odd sandwich, and half of the teddy grahams I had put on the plate. She had also eaten two apple slices and her juice box was empty.

_Why is it that my Bella can only eat what a small child would eat? Why is Bella's body 'full' after so little food consumption?_

This train of thought begins to concern me, but all too soon, Isabella's whining interrupts my reverie.

"Edwaaaard…"

She was sitting up on her knees in her chair now, leaning across the table toward me…still holding out that damn apple slice. An apple slice that my instincts were telling me she needs to eat. My eyes zeroed in on that thin arm currently in front of me.

_My Bella's body needs more food…needs nourishment._

"Isabella, eat the apple slice."

She shook her head. "No, don't wanna…"

"Eat it, and then we'll see about playing outside," I suggested in a persuasive tone.

"But my Edward, I'm full…" she insisted with a small pout.

"Baby girl, please just eat it. It's healthy for you…has lotts of vitamins that can make that ucky sick feeling go away," I told her softly.

She shook her head.

_See? Fucking stubborn._

"Isabella, don't tell me no. Finish your fruit," I insisted firmly.

When she just stared at me, I added in a softer tone, "Now, sweetheart."

She started to basically dangle the apple slice in front of my face, then. Side to side, back and forth.

She gave me a small smile.

"You want it? It's yummy…" she said in a light persuading tone.

I smiled back, but kept up my argument.

"If it's so yummy, then why won't you eat it?"

She stopped moving the apple slice, then shook her head. "Mm-mm," she muttered with a determined look in her eye.

My eyes quickly scanned her leaned over form. "Isabella, you're in the perfect position for a spankin, did you know that?" I told her lightly with the same small smile, but my eyes had hardened, betraying my relaxed posture and soft tone.

I was getting…angry.

She sucked on her bottom lip for four seconds before she found the subtle threat in my words, causing her to finally bring the apple slice to her mouth.

"I'm full," she told me with a mouth full of apple.

I relaxed a bit at her chewing.

"Well then, I guess it's a good thing that I'm only making you finish the one apple slice and not the whole damn plate, huh…" I trailed off suggestively.

She looked down at her plate and nodded. "Yah-huh…very good," she agreed.

After a second, she swallowed and smiled. "All done."

I nodded at her accomplishment with the small apple slice, and refrained from rolling my eyes. She really needed to eat more than that, but I wasn't going to push it. If she really was full, then eating more would just make her get sick and cause her to vomit, and that was the opposite of what I was trying to achieve. So I decided to just play it safe and leave it alone. She would be eating more at dinner, though.

I knew that she wanted to play outside. It was a beautiful day, and she was wearing that pretty sundress. I bet she wanted to swing on her new swing, since she hadn't gotten a chance to yet.

"How do you feel, baby girl?" I asked in concern.

"Edward, I wanna play," she informed me.

I nodded. "I know, but how do you _feel_?"

She shrugged delicately and got up from her chair. "I'm feelin okay," she said lightly.

_Okay? What the fuck does 'okay' mean, anyway?_

"Come here."

I stood from my chair as she walked around the table over to me. When she was standing in front of me, I kissed her forehead, checking for that fever. It was still slightly there, but I could tell that the medicine was starting to work, beginning the process of keeping it under control.

"You still have a fever, baby, but maybe we can go play outside in a little bit," I suggested.

I figured that I could recheck her in about ten minutes. I was almost positive that the fever would be gone by then, and we'd be good to go outside so that she could play on her new swing, or bounce around a bit on the trampoline. She might even want to draw with her chalk again…or play with the balls.

"But how come we can't play now, Edward?" she asked.

"Because-"

"I wanna play _now_," she informed me.

I nodded at her statement, before repeating myself.

"I know that, but I said no because of your fever. Maybe in a little bit, when the fever goes away, we can go outside."

"But Edwaaaard…" she whined.

My eyes flashed with anger at the annoying sound of it. I quickly reached behind her and swatted her ass.

She gasped. "Owwie…"

I slowly shook my head and slightly glared at her, silently telling her that she should know better by now, then to whine like that...just because she wasn't getting her way.

"Go upstairs and stop whining," I told her firmly, then gritted my teeth and sighed through my sudden flare of irritation. In a lighter tone, I added, "Why don't you draw me a pretty picture on your Doodle toy and when you're done, I'll see if that fever is gone, okay? If it is, we can go outside," I suggested.

She sniffled, then said in a sad voice, "Okay…"

She turned to go upstairs then, so I picked up her plate and took it to the kitchen. I thought about how I felt like my temper was slightly out of control right now.

_Where the fuck is Jasper when I need him?_

I had just spanked Isabella a minute ago without any hesitation, or a second thought. Granted, she did break one of her rules with that god awful whining that makes me want to climb the fucking walls when I hear it, but usually, I think through that kind of thing a bit more. I don't just act on a whim like that. Maybe it's just the stress of today…along with this past week.

I shrugged it off and threw away the left over food from her lunch, then washed the plate and put it back in the cabinet. After I wiped some crumbs off the dining table and kitchen counter, I went back upstairs.

Half way up the steps, I found that Isabella had figured out how to use my stereo system. Bella's Eminem CD had begun to play.

"Cleanin' Out My Closet' was blaring through the speakers when I opened the bedroom door.

Isabella sat on the hardwood floor. Her back was leaning up against the side of our bed, and she had that MagnaDoodle laying in her lap. She sang, or…talked, along with the words of the song while her hand worked skillfully on the pink, juvenile toy. She kept moving the button across the screen to erase her pictures, then she'd start right back up again.

While I waited for her to finish her assigned picture, I lay on the bed, stared up at the ceiling, and tried to reign in my newfound feelings of anger and irritation. I placated myself in thinking that it really was most likely just from stress.

The songs "Evil Deeds', 'Criminal', 'Kill You', 'Marshall Mathers', 'The Way I Am' and 'Who Knew' played through before Isabella finally showed me what she had drawn. It also didn't escape my notice, and it blew my fucking mind, that Isabella knew all the lyrics to those violent songs. Profanity, prejudice slurs, and all.

So…it would appear that Isabella likes Korn and Eminem. Not exactly little-girl-friendly music. I wonder what she would do if I told her that she couldn't listen to that crap anymore. I decided to leave that conversation for another day as I looked at the picture she had drawn on her MagnaDoodle.

It was a simple drawing of the tire swing outside. She obviously wanted to go play and swing on it.

As 'Superman' began blaring through the speakers, I turned the volume down and told her to stand up.

"C'mere, baby…let's see about that fever," I told her as I walked over to her.

I pressed my lips to her forehead and smiled against her skin when I found that I was right and her fever was, in fact, gone. She smiled and kissed my cheek as I informed her that she could go play outside now. I followed her as she skipped downstairs and yelled for her to be careful as she practically bolted out the door, heading straight for that tire swing.

I smiled, knowing that I was taking excellent care of her wants and needs. I was spoiling her…that was a given and blatantly obvious, but I didn't give a damn. Bella won't let me buy things for her, so I have begun doting on Marie and Isabella as much as possible.

It's so satisfying, and I love doing it. Everytime I think of an opportunity to buy something that they might want or need, I smile. No, that's a lie…I get a big ass goofy grin on my face. Isabella could have anything she wanted, she just had to ask for it…hence, the teddy bear that will be arriving with Alice in a little while.

I believe Fuzzy bear will be his name.

_Fucking adorable._

I walked outside at a human pace and sat down, keeping my eye on Isabella. We had plenty of lawn furniture out here now and I had chosen to sit on the porch swing. All this furniture just went along with the basketball setup, trampoline and tire swing that we had out here now. Apparently, it made the area look 'inviting', as Esme had put it. If my girl ever wanted to have lunch out here on a nice day, then she could, because there was a plastic table with chairs out here too.

Isabella climbed onto the tire swing and stood on it, keeping a tight grip on the rope as she started to subtly lean back and forth, making the swing begin to move with her slight body weight.

"Edward!"

"What?"

"Push me…" she pleaded.

I shook my head a little. "Only if you sit your little tushy down on that tire, Isabella. I'm not going to push you while you're standing on it," I told her.

"Kay," she said quickly, then carefully squatted down before putting both her legs through the middle of the tire, allowing her to sit on the rubber surface of the swing.

I walked over to her and stepped behind the swing. I grabbed both her hands in mine, then wrapped her palms around the tightly bound rope, located at both her sides.

"Hang onto these, Isabella," I cautioned her.

"Wanna go high, Edward," she told me excitedly, while bouncing in place on the seat a bit.

I chuckled at her eagerness. She was so cute.

I placed my hands above where hers were located on the ropes, and kissed the top of her head, before pushing the swing forward a bit. After a minute, she got some good momentum going and started twisting around a bit, keeping her satisfied with how 'high' she was going. It wasn't really that she was swinging high, or anything, more like she was just going around in big circles at a fairly fast rate. When she started twisting around, she would giggle, and, as always, my ears delighted in the sound of it.

I smiled, but wondered how she wasn't getting dizzy at all the circular motions. I mean, she is kind of sick right now…

"Isabella?" Alice's voice came from the back door.

We both looked in the direction of a smiling Alice, who was holding up a brown teddy bear. I watched when Isabella's eyes got wide and sparkled with amusement as she squealed in a very Alice-like manner, making both me and Alice laugh.

"My Fuzzy bear!" she squeaked excitedly.

I chuckled. "He's here…" I informed her softly.

"Edward, I want down…want down, now," she said in a rushed voice, keeping her eyes intently trained on Alice and her new bear.

I reached out for the ropes to still the swing. "Okay, baby."

Once the tire was still, I dropped another kiss to the top of her head. She hurriedly slid down off the side of the swing, then grabbed my hand and started dragging me toward the back porch where Alice was still standing with the stuffed bear.

When we arrived over by Alice, Isabella was suddenly very shy and hid half her body behind my arm. She pressed her cheek into my bicep and gave Alice a small smile.

"Hi, Ali…" she said shyly in almost a whisper. Her intent stare drifted from Alice, over to the soft toy in Alice arms, then.

"Hello, Isabella," Alice responded with a smile that barely contained her vibrating excitement at the fact that Isabella was actually speaking to her.

Isabella pointed a hesitant finger at the bear. "Is he here to live with us?" she asked curiously.

"Yes, silly girl," I told her with a kiss to her _mmm_ smell so good locks. "He is yours."

Alice nodded, agreeing with my statement.

"Can I…hold him now?" Isabella asked, barely keeping the longing concealed in her voice.

Her question was obviously meant for Alice but her intent eyes never left the stuffed animal.

"Of course, you can," Alice assured her with a smile and gently held the bear out for Isabella to take.

Isabella's hand shot out, snatching the bear out of Alice's hands with a quickness, causing both me and Alice to chuckle at her eagerness. Isabella ignored us though, as she hugged and squeezed the bear to her chest with a big smile on her face. She didn't talk, just turned and made her way over to the trampoline, her new toy tucked tightly to her chest.

She placed the stuffed animal on the side of the trampoline before climbing onto it herself. Alice went back inside to unload the shopping bags from her car and I sat back down on the porch swing to watch Isabella.

She talked to the bear for a minute, informing him of his name and her name and that she was his new friend and how they'd be bestest friends forever…how he could meet Haley and Ariel when they went back inside. Then she told him to sit and watch while she played on her 'jump-a-lene', informing him that if he sits in just the right spot, then he can bounce high too.

I smiled. She is just too fucking cute.

I watched as she jumped in the middle of the trampoline, being very mindful of her safety rules while she plays on that death trap, thankfully. She is not to jump near, or on the edge, unless she just really wants a spanking, along with not being able to play on it for an entire day.

I swear to God, if I ever catch her doing anything dangerous, like…jumping on the edge of that thing, or sliding down the fucking stair banister, like she had mentioned wanting to do the other day, I wouldn't hesitate to take those wretched spankings up a notch to a completely different level. Those pretty little panties would be coming down, and she would not like me at all when I'm that angry.

I felt a sudden rush of anger at the mere thought of her doing something like that. My chest began to rumble and I clenched my jaw, breathing in deeply…pulling in my angel's scent from her spot on the trampoline. I was able to relax a few seconds later, relieved when my anger at the hypothetical situation had dissipated.

"Watch me…" I heard her tell her bear, right before she did a front flip and landed on her back, giggling the entire time.

She crawled over to him and grabbed his arm. Once she put him over to the middle with her, she stood and started jumping around, circling the bear, causing it to bounce in the air every time she landed on the black, stretchy material.

Soon, she started jumping backwards a bit, getting closer and closer to the edge. My eyes zeroed in on the distance between her feet and the blue padded material, marking the 'no-jump zone'.

"Isabella," I called out firmly.

Her head whipped around in my direction. When she saw the look on my face, she quickly looked behind her to find that she was getting too close to that damn edge. Realizing that she might be in trouble, she immediately sat down and looked back to me apologetically.

"Sorry," she told me.

I relaxed and nodded. "Pay attention to where you're goin, baby girl."

She nodded and crawled back to the middle then started jumping again, with a relieved smile on her face.

She picked the bear up then, murmuring softly into it's ear, "You can jump high with me, now."

About five minutes later, she was breathless from all her jumping and it was causing her to start coughing again. I was thinking that it was time for her to go back inside, but before I could suggest it, she threw the new bear down onto the trampoline by her feet, then looked over to me.

The look on her face was not happy anymore…

"What the fuck, Edward?" she said.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" I asked Marie, not entirely sure what she was upset about.

She frowned then, the anger instantly melting from her features. Her shoulders slumped a bit.

_She's pouting?_

"Don't _I_ get a new toy?" she asked in a small voice.

"Oh, Jesus," I said exasperatedly. I sighed. "Yes…_of course_ you can get a new toy, too. What would you like?"

_Fuck, yes!_

I get to buy something for her, too.

_Tell me what you want…what you need, Marie. You can have **anything** and **everything**._

"Edward?" she said sadly.

I got up from the porch swing then, and walked over to her. "What's wrong, love?" I asked in concern when I reached the side of the trampoline.

She sighed. "I don't fucking feel good, and Isabella got a new toy, but _I_ want a new toy too, and I _miss_ you, and can't we just fucking cuddle up or something? God, and Bella is getting on my damn nerves and you have a motherfuckin wicked tongue, by the way…" she trailed off, eventually giving me a devilish smirk.

_Oh, shit…_

If Marie knows about my fantasy coming true last night, then Isabella does as well. What must she think?

_Holy shit._

This is not good.

I looked back up to Marie. She wasn't smirking anymore, but frowning.

"Umm…sure, baby. C'mere," I said while reaching my arms up for her.

She bent down a bit, so I hooked my hands under her shoulders and brought her frail body to mine. I kissed her head, always checking for that fever, then I reached for Isabella's new bear. With my arm placed under Marie on my hip, and the bear in my other hand, I started back towards the house.

I marveled at the fact that I had been carrying my girl around like a child a lot lately, but immediately found that I didn't mind at all, so I stopped dwelling on it.

Marie looked so miserable and sad. I started trying to figure out how to cheer her up. I placed a cool kiss to her cheek before she laid her head on my shoulder. Once we were back in the bedroom, I put Isabella's new stuffed bear on the desk, next to her MagnaDoodle.

I put my hand on the small of Marie's back and scooted her from her place on my hip, over to my front, so that I could feel her heart beat against my chest. She wrapped her arms around my neck as I sat down on the edge of the bed. I rubbed her back softly, frowning when I encountered some tense muscles. I kissed my mark on her neck and went to work on trying to sooth and massage her back with my cool touch.

After a minute, she sighed, then moaned uncomfortably.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" I asked, concerned.

"Don't feel good…" she mumbled into my neck.

I nodded. "I know."

I did know, but I was really confused at the same time. I mean, Isabella was all smiles and giggling a split second before Marie came around, appearing to be feeling just downright miserable. Maybe Marie really doesn't know how to handle being sick, at all…

"I fucking love you, Edward. I missed you so much. Really. The level of missing you that I have achieved is fucking unbelievable. I took it to such pathetic heights…" she trailed off, her voice soft and weak.

I squeezed her tighter to me. "I missed you too, babe. I was wondering when you were going to come back around to see me," I said, then kissed her cheek. "Now, about that new toy…"

I felt her smile against my neck. "I want something that I can listen to my groovy tunes with, Edward…" she trailed off. "Not a stereo," she said quickly before I could assume that that was what she was talking about.

Besides, we already had two stereos. One for the bedroom, and one for the bathroom.

She sighed. "I don't know what the fuck it's called…" she said as she lifted her head from my shoulder.

She was straddling me…her legs were wrapped around my waist, her feet locked together behind my back while she sat on my lap. Her dress was riding up a bit in her current position, but I chose to ignore it. As much as possible…which means that I failed. Fucking miserably. But I don't care. I suddenly felt the need to taste her again…to hover my face just above the most delicious smell on the planet, and taste her sweet, wet skin. I had the urge to take that pretty little bud back in between my lips, and just suckle on it gently, and -

"You know…those things that you can take with you? Listen to your fuckawesome music wherever you are, with those ridiculously tiny earphones? You know what the fuck I'm talkin about, sexy?" she asked with a confused, but hopeful look on her face.

I swallowed back some lust-induced venom, prayed for Jasper's return, and nodded at Marie. "You want an Ipod, baby?"

She smiled brightly, obviously recognizing that word. "Goddamn it, yes! That's the tricky fucking name of those little buggers."

She nodded. "Yes, I want one of those."

"Okay," I said lightly.

"Actually, love, I need to go get Bella a cell phone, too…" I trailed off suggestively. "How do you feel?" I asked, thinking that maybe we could make a trip to Best Buy this afternoon for both items.

She furrowed her brow, then bluntly informed me, "Like shit."

"Well…hmmm," I hummed in response.

I kept my hands moving along her back and tried to decide when I could go out to get Bella's cell phone and Marie's Ipod.

After a few minutes of silence, Marie asked, "Edward, can we go now?"

I kissed her forehead, checking for a fever. When I was positive that she didn't have one, I nodded and murmured against her skin, "Go put your shoes on, baby."

Isabella had been playing outside barefoot, like she preferred. She had told me that she likes the feel of the cool, soft grass on her feet. I reluctantly agreed to this a few days ago after carefully and meticulously scanning our yard with my vampire eyes for anything that could hurt, or puncture her skin. When I found nothing, I gave her my nod of consent, so she took off her shoes and went to play for the next few hours. She's been playing barefoot ever since.

When we made our way downstairs, I went to the kitchen and grabbed a couple of cough drops out of the cabinet, sticking them in my pocket, with some tissues, for later. It was still too soon for her to take another dose of cold medicine, but I wasn't worried because I knew that we would definitely be back before she needed to take it again in three hours.

We passed by Alice on our way out, and Marie stopped to talk to her.

"Wanna come, Ali?" she asked, her voice giving away her stuffy nose and scratchy throat.

I handed Marie a cough drop when Alice reluctantly shook her head. She wanted to come, but had promised to be here when Jasper returned home from hunting. She had seen that we would be gone long after Jasper's return.

"Maybe next time," Alice placated her.

Marie shrugged nonchalantly. "Yeah, okay."

Alice nodded. "Okay."

Marie turned to face both vampires then, and raised her eyebrows a bit before rocking back on her heels. She smacked her lips together and gave a small wave. "Later, bitches."

Rosalie slightly glared at the 'bitch' comment, to which Marie laughed.

"Oh, damn…you are way too fucking easy, blondie," she proclaimed with a smirk, then turned to start walking towards the garage.

I followed her out to the Volvo, unlocking it with the remote on my key. Once we were in the car and backing out of the driveway, Marie turned on the radio, but didn't sing along with the song. I guess her throat was too sore to use her voice much.

When we were about halfway to the Best Buy store just outside of town, Marie started singing along with a song called 'Only One' by Yellowcard. I cracked a small smile at the sound of her singing with a stuffy nose.

When the song was over, she began talking.

"Hey Edward, when do we gotta go see doctor dad again?" she asked, then cleared her throat.

"Umm, Monday, I believe? So, that would be in two days, sweetheart…"

"You know, I really don't like this bullshit therapy, Edward," she told me then.

I nodded, already knowing this, but I also knew that it was important for her to talk about this stuff and vent to someone. I smiled internally, knowing that she would always choose _me_ to talk to.

"I really don't like hearing the fucked up shit that my Bell says to the doc, or watching Isabella go crazy, while my Bell tells her creepy little stories," she continued. "Isabella will tear some shit up, y'all better watch out for that tiny terror. If she gets mad, there's no stopping that fuckin brat," Marie warned me, while slowly shaking her head.

"What makes you say that, sweetheart? What does she 'tear up'?" I asked.

She turned to face me then, a bit exasperated. "I can _see_ what my Bell talks about, Edward. I told you…we can watch each other's memories," she reminded me. "I swear, it's like a trip to the goddamn movies, or something equally fucking mundane," she added.

She looked back to the front then, watching through the window as the outside world flew by us. "When Isabella sees that shit, she gets fucking pissed…she starts thinking about killing that sick fuck with the blonde hair. She _should_ fucking kill him. Knock that motherfucker down into his goddamn grave," she growled out, then she gave a little shrug. "Shit, if I could help, I would…but I wasn't there. I can't enter her world, if ya know what I mean," she said.

"Marie, what -"

"She's got some fuckawesome ideas, too," she said, interrupting me. "We could be like, partners in crime…me and that little one," Marie said with a nod.

Her lips slightly turned up in a small smile, then. "She smiles…it makes her so goddamn happy to fantasize and think up different ways to make him fucking scream," she informed me. "She wants to burn him alive, and watch as the skin melts off his fugly face. She wants to stab his dick n' balls with long and thick, rusty fucking needles. She also wants to take one of those motherfucking purity knife thingys, and slowly saw off his wrinkly ass pecker. Watch him bleed while she fucking laughs in his face…" she finished with a giggle.

She turned to face me then. "It's motherfucking brilliant!" she said brightly with a smile, amusement lighting her expressive eyes. "She just wants to delight in the fuckawesome sounds of his high-pitched, girly screams." She didn't hold back anymore, and laughed, then. "I bet he _does_ scream like a little bitch," she said through her giggles and laughter.

When she sobered up a bit, she turned to look back out the windshield and continued in a more subdued voice. "She wants to make him cry like a goddamn baby. Sometimes, I can feel her excitement…it's fucking contagious. She enjoys that shit, just like me," she informed me. "Being the one to send wicked people off to hell is a heady, marvelous fucking feeling, ya know…" she trailed off.

I was so…_disturbed_.

And suddenly, so goddamn stressed out.

I clenched my jaw five times, before attempting to speak.

"Umm…" I mumbled.

"Have you ever done that, Edward? Ever kill anyone?" she asked lightly.

_Fucking hell._

I sighed, then murmured, "Yes…"

She smiled and gave me a little nod. "So then, you understand," she stated simply.

I huffed in frustration then, and found my fucking voice. "Yes, but…goddamn it, why do _you_ enjoy it so much?" I asked, remembering when she revealed to Carlisle in therapy that violence was a sexual turn-on for her.

She had stated, 'it makes me wet'.

_Oh my fuck…_

I gripped the steering wheel and forced myself not to think about exactly _how_ wet it makes her.

I cringed. "Or, better yet, why the hell does my _five year old_ enjoy the fucking idea of it? Has she actually done it? Killed someone, like you have?" I asked, my voice rising with every question.

"Yes," she said simply, then popped another cough drop in her mouth.

_Of course. Fucking, of course, she has!_

Why else would my Bella be committed to a state hospital at such a young age, against her mother's consent?

Yes, like I said before, I did my fucking research. I had found that Jim was dead and that my Bella was committed to that damn hospital by the state of Arizona, but not by a parent. She was under their custody, not Renee's, for two years after they had discharged her.

_So, why didn't I realize this before? Damn it, of course, she would be considered a danger to herself, or others, in order for that to happen._

Marie continued talking through my internal monologue.

"I mean, why come up with all those fuckawesome, intriguing ideas, but not put any of them to use?" she asked rhetorically. "The kid's not stupid, Edward. You shouldn't waste a brilliant talent like that," she stated with a shake of her head. "She's got some admirable skills, I could fucking learn a thing or two from her. In fact," she smiled, "I am."

_Christ._

My little Isabella really is a fucked up, disturbed little girl…not my innocent angel anymore. That thought suddenly upset me. So fucking immensely. It was ridiculous how fast that realization had lowered my spirits.

I started thinking back on our days together, and it thankfully, relieved some of the grief and brought a smile back to my face.

_Damn…my moods are out of whack today._

Maybe Isabella was like Marie, in the sense that she only murders in self-defense? Then, I can't help but be happy at that thought, because that would mean that I am very, _very_ proud of her. She would be part of the reason why my Bella is still alive today.

I sighed, relieved that those horrible feelings of anxiety had left me just as fast as they had come.

"Did she only do it to people who were going to hurt Bella?" I asked hesitantly, pulling into the Best Buy parking lot.

Marie just shrugged and unbuckled her seat belt. She had a smile on her face now as she eyed the store, obviously becoming excited at the prospect of getting a new 'toy'.

Right.

We were here for a cell phone and an Ipod. I pushed thoughts of a murdering little Isabella out of my mind and focused back on Marie.

I had missed her.

I looked at her and took in her beautiful body, covered in that pretty, cotton sundress. The subtle sunlight accented the slight red highlights of her long hair that was flowing down her back.

She was just so…fucking _sexy_.

"C'mere," I ordered softly.

She smiled at my request and complied. When she leaned over to me, I gave her soft, pink lips a kiss to remember.

I slipped my hand behind her head and gathered some of her long locks, fisting them into a firm hold, silently and effectively telling her who was in control.

I kissed her until she needed air, then I slowly moved along her jaw line, down to her throat and inhaled her enticing aroma, before finally pulling back with a satisfied smile on my face.

Yeah…I couldn't help it. Her skin is so fucking _delicious_.

Marie seemed to agree with me as she smiled up at me, with dilated pupils and all, thoroughly dazzled.

"So fuckin yummy…" she said, referring to the sweet smell of my venom.

I chuckled and kissed her again.

"Love you," I murmured softly against her warm lips.

"Mmmm…" she moaned.

_Fuck…_

"Fuckin love you, too," she murmured back.

I simply couldn't resist sucking her bottom lip into my mouth before reluctantly pulling away and getting out of the car.

When I was able to clear my head with a scent that wasn't my Bella's heavenly one, I realized how unstable my moods were becoming today. It was fucking unnerving.

I was so upset on the drive over here. Concerned, angry, stressed…

Then, just a minute ago, I was so ready to just roughly lay Marie down in the back seat of my car, and eagerly bury my face in between her legs while she screamed in pure ecstasy for all the Best Buy parking lot to hear.

I really…really needed a Jasper intervention.

More than I'd like to admit.

Marie got out of the car then, and after clicking on the alarm with the key remote, we were walking hand in hand into the busy Best Buy store.

I knew that my Bella's favorite color was blue, so that was what I was looking for while we stood at the various displays of cell phones. I just needed to add another line to our already existent family plan, so I focused on the available new phones from our service carrier, AT&T.

Marie quickly became restless by my side.

She kept trying to pull me in all different directions, rudely interrupting me while I was busy talking to the sales rep.

"Edwaaaaard," she whined for the fourth time, while tugging on my hand.

I didn't look at her, but continued my conversation with the sales rep, keeping a polite, but apologetic smile on my face.

"Fuck…" she muttered under her breath, before trying to rip my arm out of it's socket again. "Edwaaaaard," she said louder, getting frustrated with my lack of attention on her.

I gritted my teeth, pulled her to me, and tucked her into my side, all while never taking my eyes off the potential cell phones for my Bella. I had my choices narrowed down to two, while the sales rep rambled on about each phone's features.

She stomped her foot a bit while I firmly held her to me.

"Edward, when can we go look at the fuckawesome Ipods?" she asked impatiently.

I felt my irritation spike.

"Excuse me for a minute," I politely told the sales rep, interrupting him from his practiced and boring speech.

I turned to Marie then, and gave her a hard look.

I brought my mouth to her ear, "If you don't fucking _quit_ interrupting me, we are going to take a little walk back out to the car to deal with your rude and childish behavior," I threatened lowly in her ear.

She bit her lip, as I continued to talk in harsh whispers. "Stop it and be fucking patient, Marie. I am almost done. When I am done, we will go look at the Ipods," I informed her, then inconspicuously slid my hand down her back and gave her ass a light pinch through her short dress.

She was quiet then, but I could tell by her body language that her impatience was persisting as she became restless against my side again. I was just glad that she had shut up long enough for me to make a damn decision. Once I chose the black and blue phone, I paid for it and had it activated. I smiled then, knowing that Bella would be happy with my choice.

Marie smiled and breathed a sigh of relief when she realized that we were finally walking away from all the boring phones. We arrived at the display of Ipods, realizing then, that there were too many to choose from. I wanted her to have the best one, because it should go without saying that I only get the best for my girls. They shouldn't expect any less.

"What color do you want, babe?" I asked her while both our eyes scanned the Ipod selections.

"Shit…umm, green or black," she informed me after a minute.

After she looked around for a bit, she decided on the black Apple Ipod Classic. I grabbed the one with the most memory, giving her 160GB to play around with. When she was sure that that was the one she wanted, I clasped her hand back in mine and we started making our way towards the long checkout lines.

But Marie stopped me before we could get that far.

"Hey, Edward?"

"Yes, love?"

"My Bell's been wanting that fuckawesome Mariokart game for her DS…" she trailed off suggestively with a sly smile.

I smiled and nodded at her, feeling down right giddy all of a sudden.

"Show me," I practically demanded.

I would not miss out on an opportunity to buy my Bella something that she wanted.

Marie smiled at my eagerness and lead me over to the selection of Nintendo DS games.

She let go of my hand when we arrived and muttered under her breath, "It's around here somewhere…"

She eyed the different rows of games with disdain.

"…In this shitmaze of fuckery they call a goddamn video game section," she ranted, then coughed.

I chuckled at her exasperated statement. It really was a confusing mess, with various games tossed haphazardly in their random, undesignated spots. The workers really needed to straighten this area up, then maybe it would be consumer-friendly again.

Her eyes scanned the hundreds of titles, and my eyes followed, as well. I was pretty sure that they at least had this section alphabetized, or something. Marie squatted down into a little ball, intent on looking through the bottom rows.

She coughed again, covering her mouth with her hand. I quickly grabbed a Halls cough drop out of my pocket and handed it to her.

I would have given them all to her for her to hold and take as needed, but that small dress didn't have any pockets.

She unwrapped it and placed it on her tongue, grimacing at the no doubt, weird taste of the thing. They sure as hell smelt weird.

Her hand shot out in front of her as she grabbed a game.

She cleared her throat, "Here…" she said and held it up to me from her spot on the ground.

I smiled and took it from her, holding it in my hand and relishing in the idea of buying my Bella something that she wanted. Not needed…but, _wanted_.

_Oh, fuck yes._

The prospect filled me with immense satisfaction…probably a little more than necessary.

Marie stood then, and told me that she had to use the bathroom. I nodded and pointed her in the direction of the restrooms. I told her to meet me up front, and that I was going to save us a spot in one of the long, busy lines. She nodded and walked in the direction that I had pointed out, while I turned on my heel and made my way over to the checkout lines.

She joined me about four minutes later and we stood together in line, hand in hand. I could hear the cough drop clicking against her teeth as she played with it on her tongue.

I noticed many of the male species in this store, blatantly staring at my Marie with lustful expressions in their eyes as they gazed upon her body in that sexy, yet seemingly innocent sundress.

_Mine._

My territorial instincts were kicking in with a vengeance, causing me to release her hand and take this up a notch. I wrapped her small body around mine, enveloping her in my arms possessively as we stood in line. I glared at the on looking males, both teens and adults, alike.

She happily returned my embrace and pressed her body into mine, snuggling to my chest a bit, enjoying the comfort that only _my_ touch can provide her. I knew she didn't feel good, and would enjoy my arms wrapped around her right now.

I kissed her forehead, checking to make sure that fucking fever stayed at bay. I looked over her shoulder, down her body at my wrist, which was currently located at the small of her back. Noticing the time, I realized that she was due for that dose of cold medicine in about an hour. When I was sure she didn't have a fever, I loosened my grip on her body, but kept an arm around her.

That's when I felt it. A small, thin square object against her lower abdomen. I furrowed my brow and looked down at her. She wasn't looking at me, but eyeing the Ipod in my hand intently with a small smile on her face.

I put my mouth to her ear. "Marie…_wha_t is under your dress against your tummy?" I asked curiously in a whisper.

She gave a nonchalant shrug without looking at me, then whispered back, "Don't worry 'bout it."

I stepped in front of her, easily hiding her body from anyone behind me, and quickly slipped my hand under her dress, grabbed onto the _something_ that was tucked into the front of her panties, then slipped my hand back out from underneath her dress. I kept my hand down while I gripped the object.

I knew from my mind's eye that nobody had just seen me stick my hand up the front of my girl's dress.

_Thank God._

Marie slightly gasped at my hand's intrusion. "Edwaaard…" she whined in a whisper.

I looked down at my lowered hand.

It was gripping an Evanescence CD.

My head shot up then, and I glared at her as I felt the inevitable rush of anger that seemed to grace me with it's unwanted presence a lot today.

_Shoplifting again? Fucking really?_

I clenched my eyes shut, knowing that they had suddenly turned black. I couldn't get a grip on this anger, and I was starting to worry.

_God**damn** it, shit…fuck!_

I opened my eyes and resumed my intent glare on a very guilty-looking Marie. I realized then, that guilt didn't suit her. It made her look smaller, somehow, and that disturbed me a little.

She was fucking small enough, as is.

"Marie…" I warned in a harsh, whispered voice. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

She shrugged and gave me a pleading look. "I want it…" she stated in a small voice, then coughed.

I let go of her then, and continued my hard glare, suddenly hearing my Bella's words run repeatedly through my head: _"Promise me you won't let Marie land me another criminal record…"_

I was just so fucking _angry_ at Marie right now. My Bella knew that this would happen…she was warning me.

"Why didn't you just ask then?" I practically hissed out, before roughly grabbing her upper arm and moving us ahead in the line.

I kept a firm grip on her as we stood in silence, waiting for our turn to pay.

Now…as we stood there in the ridiculously long fucking line, I seethed quietly to myself and went over a shit ton of options that I had available to me, before finally coming to a decision.

Most people/parents would just put the items back and walk out of the store with the kid, refusing to buy them what they wanted.

But, see…I am just not capable of doing that. Sure, there's the option that I could just compromise and buy the Ipod, then put the CD back, but I can't do that either. I _have_ to get her this damn CD now. Just knowing that she wants it, compels me to provide it for her.

_Fucking hell._

And those were the easy solutions, too.

_Goddamn it._

I am just so…so fucking _angry_ and _irritated_ and _fed up_ at the realization that my Marie is a little fucking hoodlum, who hangs out with filthy werewolves and sells hardcore street drugs and steals whenever she feels like it.

_Well, not anymore…not if I can fucking help it._

I quickly decided to just hurry up and pay for this stuff, then I could take care of her thieving, criminal ass when we got back to the car.

I turned my black glare back to Marie then, only to see that she had a worried expression on her face.

_Good. She needs to be worried._

"I'll deal with you when we get to the car," I warned her in a cold voice, informing her of my decision.

She bit her bottom lip, as I turned my angry stare away from her. I moved my hand from her thin bicep, down to her hand and kept a firm hold on it. I spent the rest of our time in the line trying my damndest to begin calming down.

I was furious, but still realized that I couldn't be this angry when we got out to the car in a few minutes time…

At least, that's what I kept telling myself.

"But, I thought you wouldn't get it for me, since I'm already gettin the fuckin Ipod," she muttered to me in a small, quiet voice.

I simply ignored her and continued to deeply inhale her scent, like a drug, effectively beginning the calming process.

A minute later, it was our turn to pay, so I placed the Ipod, the game and that fucking CD on the podium for the cashier to check us out. The process was fairly quick, and I gladly snatched the plastic bag out of the poor girl's hands, knowing, but not caring, that I was scaring the crap out of her with my quick movements and black eyes.

I kept Marie's hand in mine, but didn't talk to her as we walked over to the Volvo. We were parked near the back of the large parking lot. I did this because I liked to keep my clean and sleek car away from other people's junk cars as much as possible. It took roughly two minutes to arrive at my car, walking at a slow, human pace.

I set the pace slow for both our benefits. I still needed to calm down a great deal, and I'm sure that Marie had to steel herself for what was to come. 'Cause I can guarantee, it wouldn't be an enjoyable experience, for either of us. She was in trouble and I was determined. And fucking pissed off.

A bad combination, if you ask me.

Instead of opening the passenger door for Marie, like usual, I opened the small door next to it, silently signaling to her with a hard look and an abrupt nod of my head, that she should get in the back seat, instead.

I turned away from her then, and tossed the plastic shopping bag I had been carrying, through the opened car door. It landed on the drivers seat. I just needed to get it out of my hands, to deal with Marie properly.

When I turned back around, I saw that Marie was trying to make a very impromptu escape. So, it's needless to say…she figured out that she was in trouble. A lot of fucking trouble.

_Nice try._

I chuckled at her useless and pathetic attempt to get away from me, and was surprised when it came out sounding dark and menacing.

_Try. Fucking. Harder._

I had to calm down. I just had to. I found myself desperately wishing that Jasper would show up right about now. Just…_any_ second now. That would be awesome and greatly appreciated.

She had only made it a few hurried steps away, so I quickly strode forward and grabbed her, wrapping my arm tightly around her waist.

"Don't you ever fucking run from me," I growled in her ear.

She whimpered, "I'm sorry, Edward! Fucking _sorry_…I-"

I quickly covered her mouth with my hand, cutting off her useless apologies, as I sat us down in the back seat of my car and slammed the door shut, locking it when I did.

"Shut up," I told her in a cold voice before removing my hand from her face.

I kept my mind cautious and alert of any passerbys, only to find that there were none.

She scrambled to get off my lap, and sat in the seat beside me. My senses picked up her adrenaline, even so much as delighting in it, as I began to yell at her.

"What the hell happened last time you shoplifted, Marie?" I asked rhetorically.

"You and Bella got put in _jail_, that's what fucking happened!" I yelled, answering my own question for her.

"_Why_? Why would even try to do that again?" I asked, demanding an answer from her now with a hard look.

She shrugged. "Um…" she mumbled.

"What?" I asked in a clipped voice.

"S'just a bad fuckin habit, I guess…" she said quietly.

My eyes widened and my irritation spiked at her reasoning."Well, I'll be sure to break you of that goddamn _habit_," I spat out in a slightly rough and determined voice.

I grabbed her right arm then, and brought her over to me.

"No!" she screamed, and started to fight against my hold on her.

She began crying as I eventually forced her body to lay down, across my lap.

I ignored her cries and struggles with great ease.

Yes, she was putting up one hell of a fight, absolutely determined not to be spanked like a child, while in the parking lot of a store, but I dealt with her struggling form easily.

After all, her weak and frail human body was no match for mine.

Yes, the salt in her tears bothered me immensely.

But…surprisingly, that was _all_ that bothered me.

The guilt that was present and heavy the last time I decided to punish her, was nowhere to be found now. It had been replaced with anger and determination. I had promised my Bella, and I intended to fulfill that promise. I would keep Marie in line…no matter what it takes.

I gave her ass a sharp smack when she was finally laid out across my lap, telling to stop fucking wiggling around.

She gasped. "Ow! Fuck…Edward, I-"

I interrupted her with another smack. I did not want to hear her mouth right now. I would be doing the fucking talking, and she would be answering the goddamn questions.

"Marie, this will not happen again," I told her with finality.

"I'm mean it, and goddamn it - I am not fuckin around!" I insisted in a hard, clipped voice as she began to yell out apologies into the small space of the car.

I ignored her pleas and landed three more quick swats to punctuate my next three words. "No. More. Stealing."

"Ow! Okay!" she screamed out her agreement. "Shit," she muttered in a rushed voice as the first sob fell from her lips.

But we weren't anywhere near being through, yet. That fucking CD cost me fifteen bucks, and I planned to make sure she understood that little detail.

"You wanted that damn CD so bad, Marie…was it worth it?" I asked her with another smack to her upturned ass.

She began squirming again, so I used my arm and held her more securely to me.

_When would she realize that there was no escaping me?_

"Fuck no…" she said petulantly while she began to cry, now that she had finally stilled on my lap.

"You could have just asked for it," I pointed out through gritted teeth and spanked her again.

Her fists clenched tightly at her sides as I smacked her again. She let out another scream and continued with her sobbing cries.

I honestly couldn't find it in me to feel sorry for her, though. My sympathy was just simply non-existent.

That both bothered, and relieved me.

Relieved me because I could get through this quickly and sufficiently.

Bothered me because I was hurting her. I was…okay with that now?

_Fuck, what is **wrong** with me?_

I pushed that question aside and brought my firm hand down to her seven more times as she began squirming and kicking usuelessly again, trying but failing to escape my tight hold on her.

When I was done, and the quota of fifteen had been fulfilled, she continued to lay across my lap, crying and fisting my now tear-soaked jeans in her small hands.

I didn't lift her up from her position though, and I'm not sure why. It just…it didn't feel like we were through yet. I imagined that she felt the same way because she made no move to get up off of me. I had loosened my hold on her…yet, here she lay.

Awaiting more.

_Does she deserve more?_

After twelve seconds of listening to her sobs, I glared at the back of her head and asked in a clipped, hard voice, "Why did you try to run from me?"

"I was s-sc-scared," she sobbed out and hiccupped.

My anger caused my breath to hiss out, before I could respond. "You don't ever run from me! Marie, you fucking _belong_ to me, you are _mine_," I yelled at her.

"I swear to Christ, I will _always_ find you and bring you back," I growled out my promise.

She didn't respond. She just continued to cry, not moving from her vulnerable position across my lap.

I felt a irrational rush of anger at her unresponsiveness.

Annoyed, I grabbed a fistful of her long hair and gently pulled, just enough to tilt her head back to a desired angle.

I eyed her throat as she swallowed back a sob before I brought my mouth to her ear.

I asked in a harsh tone through gritted teeth, "_Who_ do you belong to?" then punctuated my question of possession with another particularly sharp smack to her already sore bottom.

She squeezed her eyes shut and I saw the tears spill down her flushed cheeks as she screamed out, "You!"

_Goddamn right._

I relaxed my fist then, releasing her head from my firm hold, and agreed with her, "That's fucking right."

She buried her face back into my leg then, allowing my jeans to muffle her cries as her body slightly shook with the force of her sobs.

A part of me was screaming at me to stop. Telling me that this was fucking enough. It was yelling and admonishing me for letting the monster in me have any type of control while dealing with my precious Bella, or her alternates. It insisted that I was going into overkill with the punishment.

It was that part that made me quickly lift the back her sundress, gathering the thin fabric around her waist and slip down her little panties. I did a quick once-over of the 'damage', only to see that her round flesh was only slightly pink, not red. Not anywhere near the color red.

The sight both relieved, and impressed me. I was incredibly angry right now, and just knowing that I could handle the girls' punishments without truly hurting them, no matter what my mood was, filled me with an immense feeling of relief. I knew I could never really hurt my Bella.

She was my love. My life, my everything. I could never truly harm her.

Even the monster in me recognized that fact, apparently. My instincts didn't let that side of me dwell on the overwhelming anger and run with it...causing irreparable harm. The raw and primal vampire inside of me, just beneath the surface of my façade, loved my Bella, as well.

Marie struggled again and put a quick hand behind her back to protect her now bare and exposed bottom. That action angered me…yet again.

Nobody would stop me from touching her skin.

Not even her.

_Fuck…I really need to reign in my control._

I remembered Isabella doing the same thing yesterday. I gently grabbed her wrist, and moved her hand out of the way.

"If I want to spank you with your panties down, there's not a fuckin thing you can do about it," I told her in that same rough voice, then smacked her bare flesh twice, just to make my point.

"You keep your hands out of my way," I told her firmly, then let go of her wrist.

Another sob tore up through her throat as she obediently tucked both of her hands between my legs and her chest.

My eyes drifted back over to her pink bottom, as my head began to clear and I tried to deal with the chaos of emotions coursing through me. She continued those wretched cries that were starting to rip a hole right through my fucking soul. I was beginning to agree with my inner voice. I had taken it too far…

_Shit._

I couldn't take it back, I didn't want to.

I couldn't say that I was sorry, I wasn't.

I just stayed completely silent and placed a cool hand on her bare skin. I held it still and firmly in place, like I had done yesterday with my little Isabella. I felt the heat radiating off her sore flesh, and absorbed it into my hand. I knew this would help her sensitive skin…even more so, now that it was skin to skin contact. I didn't have a clothes barrier with Marie, like I had with Isabella yesterday.

I breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that my efforts would cool her flesh and act as an anti-inflammatory at the same time, sort of numbing the pain. Like a portable fucking ice-pack.

Three minutes later, her cries had quieted down and her skin wasn't nearly as warm anymore. I removed my hand and saw the usual creamy white perfection of her lovely skin. No more pinkness.

Now that her skin was no longer sensitive, I gently pulled her panties back up, and smoothed the back of her pretty dress back down her thighs.

"Come here," I said quietly in a soft voice, but even I could hear the slight command in my statement.

I was still pretty angry at Marie, but her punishment was over now and I had to act as such.

She lifted herself off my lap and sat back on her heels in the seat to my side. I looked at her in a confusion of anger and concern. I saw that she looked hurt and remorseful as she rushed to wipe away the tears that were still flowing from her eyes.

"Ed-ward…" her voice pitifully cracked at my name.

"What?" I asked in a quiet, calm voice.

"I'm fuck…" she paused and gasped for a breath of air. "Fucking sorry," she breathed out and started to cry again.

I nodded silently, and reached over to her. I hooked my hands under her shoulders and brought her over to straddle my waist. As she buried her face in my neck, I reached in my pocket for the few tissues I had stuck in there from earlier today when Isabella had wanted to play outside.

I lifted her head from my shoulder and made quick work of wiping her face clean of all the salty tears. I knew how much they bothered her. I gave her one of the tissues, which she took gratefully, and blew her nose.

She coughed, as she continued to cry weakly. When her flushed face was sufficiently cleaned up, I spoke in a calm voice.

"If you _ever_…try that again? There will be a repeat of this, and you will find that I won't be so nice next time," I warned her, both of us knowing damn well that I was anything but 'nice' during her punishment.

She silently nodded as she tried with great effort to quiet her cries. I decided that it was time to help her out with that and lightly blew my cool and calming venom breath onto her face. She was slightly gasping for her breaths in an effort to calm herself, causing the effects of my venom tainted breath to work faster than usual. Once her nose was clear, she breathed it in deeply.

I softly ran my fingers through her long, silky hair and kept up my secret, silent apology until she was completely calm. Once she was resting her worn out body against my chest, I kissed the top of her head and noticed the slight warmth of a fever.

I gritted my teeth, realizing that she was going to be late taking her cold medicine since we had just wasted thirty fucking minutes in the backseat of my car because Marie had a 'bad habit'. A habit that she had better be cured of now.

I hugged her warm body to me one last time. "It's time to go, love."

She nodded against my chest.

"Go get in your seat," I told her softly.

She silently turned and crawled out of my lap. She carefully climbed over the center console, then made her way over to the passenger seat and sat down. At the sound of her buckle clicking into place, I opened the back door and exited the vehicle. I inhaled fresh air deeply into my lungs and quickly made my way to the driver's side then slipped back into the car. I wasted no time in starting the ignition and peeling out of my parking spot. I was in a hurry to get home before that fever fully developed.

Once we were on the road, the memory of what I had just done replayed in my mind. I cringed, but it wasn't from guilt. It was from anger at the fact that I had to take it to that level to get through to Marie, while simultaneously keeping my Bella safe from more criminal charges.

I didn't feel guilty at all. That particular feeling was nowhere to be found.

_What does that mean?_

I reached out and clasped Marie's hand in my own, rubbing small circles into her warm palm. I lifted it to my lips and placed a cool, comforting kiss to her soft knuckles.

I found that I was still angry, but not nearly as much as I had been. She brought her legs up onto her seat and curled up, leaning over and snuggling into my arm. I dropped a kiss to the top of her head, and inhaled the delicious scent of her hair as I sped down the highway.

We both remained quiet and calm the entire drive home, as we listened to the rock music that flowed from the speakers, filling the relaxed atmosphere of the car.

* * *

A/N:

Ok, kids...the moral of today's story is: Don't piss Edward off.

Because, holy shit...did I really just take it there? Yes. I did.

Ladies and gentleman, I do believe that Darkward has finally made a slight appearance in my story. How do you feel about that?

Now, for those of you that are upset -- I'm not going to go defending him or his actions...in fact, I'm kind of upset with him, myself. But before you go making judgements and assumptions, consider the facts first...

1. Jasper was not there today to help Edward's erratic moods that are caused by the constant stress he has been under lately.

2. Edward made a very bad, but very common mistake that a lot of new parents make -- he acted out of anger.

Did any of you _ever _consider the possibility that maybe our Edward is not handling his new situation as well as he says, or believes he is?

That maybe Jasper has swooped in with his talent and saved the day, many times this past week...sometimes without Edward even knowing about it?

Jasper has tamed both Edward's anger and lust, numerous times without Edward's knowledge of it even needing to be done. This leads Edward to the false hope that he can handle his newfound perdicament with ease, only dealing with the occasional bump in the road every once in a while.

But, when Jasper needs to leave for a hunt, on one of those crappy therapy days, no less -- Edward is soon bombarded with intense feelings of worried stress, anxiety, anger, helplessness, irritation, and just a general longing for Bella. He comes to the bleak realization that maybe he's not dealing well with the fact that the love of his life has a mental illness, after all..

And the reasons for her illness, cause him an immense emotional torment, all on it's own.

So...poor Edward. And poor Bella.

Now...the question is: Will this little episode of a spanking gone wrong, affect his relationship with _any_ of his girls?

Bella's not aware, but Isabella sure as hell is. Plus, Marie could always just 'tell on' Edward later, by showing Bella her memory of the events that occured this afternoon. If she does, then will Bella be upset with Edward?

Ugh...such drama, and so little time...

More importantly, though...is there even anything to really worry about now, when it comes to their individual relationships?

Did he...or did he not take it too far?

Edward feels no guilt or remorse -- yet, he does feel that he _might _have taken Marie's punishment a bit overboard.

What is _your _opinion? I wanna know!

Also...Isabella? A tiny tot murderer? Is this true? What do you think about what Marie told Edward in the car today?


	32. His Insecure Girl & Possessive Baby

EPOV

"Sweetheart, I can stop somewhere and get you some water," I suggested for the third time.

"Nooo…I'm not thirsty," she whined and coughed again, the muscles in her neck straining with the effort.

"I think that if -"

She sighed and sniffled. "Goddamn it, Edward…just take me home."

"But some water might help your throat," I gently reminded her as she began to hack up a fucking lung.

When she caught her breath, she grumbled, "Whatever," and laid her head back on the headrest, closing her eyes that had begun to water with the force of her coughs.

I was really worried. She had missed a dose of that damn medicine by fifteen minutes now, and I could already tell the major difference in her condition because of it. She looked miserable, she had a fever, and she hadn't been able to breathe peacefully without having a coughing fit every 40-55 seconds.

Her brow furrowed as her eyes stayed closed. "Mmmmm," she moaned uncomfortably, then turned her body to face mine and snuggled back into my arm.

I kissed the top of her head, my lips registering that damn fever, as I turned onto the exit ramp for a truck stop by the highway. I pulled into the convenient store and parked. I went to open my door, but stopped when I suddenly heard Marie's seatbelt unbuckling.

I turned back to her. "No...you stay here, baby."

I didn't see anything wrong with her staying in the car. Usually, she wants to, so she can continue listening to her music, while I run in somewhere to grab something, but apparently…that wasn't the case today. She looked up at me, and the look of vulnerable desperation in her eyes made my breath hitch as I looked back at her in confusion.

"What's wrong?"

She latched onto my arm. "I wanna go _with_ you," she said in a small voice and began coughing again.

I nodded, immediately agreeing to anything that would make her feel better. "Alright, love...you can come," I placated her, then turned to exit my car.

She followed suit and once I locked my car with the key remote, Marie grabbed my hand, clinging to my side as we made our way into the small store.

I shrugged off Marie's sudden clinginess as a result of her not feeling well. Usually, Isabella was the clingy one. Marie was the playful, yet moody and aloof one, only wanting affection every once in a while…affection that she always had to initiate.

Once we were in the store, I led her over to the drink selection and grabbed a bottle of water.

She sniffled. "Hey Edward?" her voice cracked when she spoke.

"Yes?"

"Why are there so many damn decisions when it comes to a fucking bottle of water?" she asked curiously, eyeing the different brands of bottled water in front of us.

I shrugged. "Not sure…"

She pointed to my hand that was holding the bottle of Ozark water I had selected for her.

"Is that one fuckin yummy?"

_Uhmm..._

I shrugged, "Sure.".

"Is it the yummiest one these trucker-fuckers got?" she asked.

I nodded, placating her again. "Yes, baby. It's the yummiest one they have."

"Good," she said with finality.

I chuckled. "Alright, is there anything else you want before we check out?"

I kept her hand in mine, not wanting to let her shoplifting ass out of my sight while we were in a store.

I found that I didn't trust her at all…and I hated it. I wanted to trust, but...I just couldn't.

_Damn it._

She started coughing again, but managed to squeak out, "Tissues," before she sniffled.

I nodded, already heading over to a row with a few household goods in it. I grabbed a box of tissues and a small 10pk of halls cough drops, since I didn't have anymore left in my pocket. When we got up to the check out counter, I saw a single dose pack of the same cold medicine I had been giving my girl, except that it was in pill form. I sighed in immense relief and grabbed it, adding it to the pile of things we were purchasing. The cashier bagged everything, and soon we were on our way back out to my car.

When we were back inside the Volvo, Marie buckled her seatbelt, then began to whine.

"Edwaaard…" Marie's voice pitifully cracked out my name.

"What, baby?" I asked softly, the concern in my voice obvious.

She spoke through a stuffy nose, sounding more and more congested by the minute, while escalating the pathetic noises of her whining.

I chose to ignore all of her whining and irritability, because she clearly felt like shit and my main focus had become trying to make her feel better. Or, at least...more _comfortable_.

While she talked, I handed her the small box of tissues, and ripped open the tiny paper package with the single dose of cold medicine in it. I grabbed her wrist, bringing her hand over to me and smoothed out her palm before placing the two pills in it. I picked up the water bottle, twisted off the cap and handed it to her.

"My throat is on fucking fire, and I swear to God, my nose is gonna fall off…it's already dyin, I just know it, and for the love of Christ, when is all this coughing gonna stop? It's pissing me the fuck off, I can't take it anymore, I just cant…ugh, just kill me now..."

She popped the pills in her mouth and took a swig of water to wash it down, then continued what was left of her speech.

"…and Edward, you gotta help me with my wicked new Ipod when we get home and we gotta cuddle...will you fuckin hold me?" she finished with that question.

I nodded. "Yes."

_Of course._

"Edwaaard…hold me..." she trailed off and got tears in her eyes.

I had just started the ignition when I smelt the salt of those tears.

I turned to face her. "What's wrong, Marie?"

She wiped at her eyes. "H-Hooold me…" she hiccupped and coughed again.

_What…**why** is she so clingy all of a sudden?_

I put my running car back in park and immediately reached for her. I plucked her out of the passenger seat and brought her over to my lap. I kept my hands at the small of her back so that the steering wheel wouldn't dig into her skin.

I kissed away the three tears that had manage to slip out of her eyes before she successfully stopped herself from crying. I placed my lips to her forehead and kept them there as I asked, once again, "What is wrong?"

When I withdrew my lingering kiss to her warm flesh and looked at her, she had a worried look on her face.

"Tell me," I coaxed her.

She sniffled, then blurted out, "I promise not to be wicked anymore."

_Oh._

I shook my head and hugged her to me, to which she tightened her hold around my neck.

Why do my girls always need so much damn reassurance after a punishment? I didn't understand it, but whatever. Apparently, I was the one that planted the seed of doubt in her mind, so I would do what I had to, to get rid of it.

But I didn't know how to explain to them, that just because they get into trouble, it doesn't mean that I love them any less. It's just a correction of behavior, and…that's all. Damn it, it is _because_ I love them, that I do it, so the notion that I 'don't love them anymore' afterwards, is just ridiculous and doesn't make any fucking sense.

_Girls are just so...fucking **confusing**._

"Don't promise me that, sweetheart," I whispered in the ear that was by my lips at the moment. "If you did, you'd be lying."

She began shaking her head, but I continued on, not letting her speak.

"You can try to behave from now on...in fact, I expect you to. But everyone messes up every once in a while, babe. It's normal, and to be expected. I just don't want you to ever think that just because you make a mistake, or mess up, I won't love you anymore. Because, that simply is not possible. I will always love you, you will always be mine. I will always be here…always. You're not sure what's wicked and what's not, but I will show you. I'll teach you, baby…you don't have to worry about it," I assured her.

She sniffled and buried her face in my neck. "Edward…"

"Yes?"

She hesitated then, so I started to soothingly rub her back while she pressed herself to me.

She finally spoke. "I don't know what you think is wicked. I don't know how to be good for you," she admitted reluctantly.

I nodded, already knowing this. "I know that, baby. That's why I said that I would always be here to show you…to teach you. You don't need to worry about it, love. Just follow your simple rules, and we'll go from there, okay?" I kissed her hair then. "I love you."

"Love you too," she mumbled, then coughed into my neck.

"Are you ready to go home?" I asked, after I spent the next minute and a half softly caressing her back and bare arms.

She nodded, but otherwise stayed silent as she climbed out of my lap and went back to her seat. Once I heard the clicking of her seatbelt, I put my car back in gear and headed back towards the highway.

Rock music was playing softly in the back round but Marie didn't attempt to sing along, like I wished she would…stuffy nose, or not. She absentmindedly played with strands of her long, silky hair, instead. Ten minutes later, Marie's coughs had quieted significantly. Soon, she was leaning her seat back and sticking her thumb in her mouth.

I was about to reach over and remove it, then remind Isabella of her bedtime rule, but when I looked at her, she was turned on her side, facing me, and her eyes were already closed. I looked back to the road and continued driving while my little angel's heart beat slowed as she slipped into unconsciousness.

When we arrived home, and I parked my car in the dark garage, I noted that it was already almost 4:00. Isabella still lay curled up in a ball, asleep on the passenger seat. I reached for the small shopping bag in the back seat, then got out and went around to the passenger side of my car. I placed the bag on the roof of the car, then slowly opened Isabella's door. I carefully reached around her for the buckle by her hip and clicked it, effectively releasing the seat belt from her body. I gently gripped my hands under her shoulders, and lifted her into my arms, before quietly clicking the door shut. I kept one arm under my sleeping beauty and grabbed the bag off the top of my car, then made my way back into the house.

We passed by Alice, Jasper and Rosalie, as they were the only ones that were home right now.

Alice thoughts assaulted me almost immediately, letting me know that she did _not_ approve with my method of handling Marie's 'bad habit' this afternoon, but I couldn't find it in me to care if she approved or not. My Bella was _my_ responsibility, I would handle her as I saw fit. I was about to tell her to fuck off and mind her own business, but I refrained, thinking better of it. I did not wanting to wake up Isabella, by having an argument with my nosy sister.

Jasper mainly expressed concern and quickly tamed the irritation building in me. I was thankful for that. It was like a huge weight was being lifted from my shoulders. I wasn't angry at Marie anymore. I wasn't irritated with his mate anymore.

_Thank the fucking lord._

I breathed a sigh of relief as I passed by an impassive Rosalie and headed up the steps to our bedroom. I climbed the steps at vampire speed, then layed Isabella's sleeping form down on the bed, tucking her pink blankie around her small body.

As I gazed her 96lb form, I was reminded that she needed to be weighed tonight. I hoped that she had gained some weight. I knew it had only been a week, but I could still hope for at least a pound. One measly little pound. That would be awesome. I would also need to start up her protein shakes again this evening, before bed. She didn't have one last night.

I quickly unpacked the shopping bag, and placed all the items on the desk. I grabbed Bella's new cell phone and set it up on the dresser to charge overnight. I put her new Mario game in the nightstand drawer with her Nintendo toy, and softly clicked the drawer shut, being mindful of my little girl asleep just a few feet away.

I placed a cool kiss to her forehead and smiled when I noticed that the fever had disappeared. After stroking a few stray strands of hair away from her face, I headed back over to the desk and powered on the laptop.

I was going to pass the time by setting up Marie's Ipod for her, and filling it with the thousands of mp3s that were on the hard drive of my computer already.

While I was fiddling with the laptop, and doing the mundane task of installing software, my mind drifted. I also needed to speak with Esme about adding a home gym in the spare room. It would be very beneficial for my Bella's weight gain goal and Marie would enjoy it. Maybe I could even install a punching bag in there for her too. Let her go to town on that thing when she gets pissed off. In fact, I could just send her to that room whenever her attitudes get out of control. Tell her to deal with her anger in there, then come back out when she feels better. Like a time-out, if you will…Marie-style.

_Yes…I do believe I like that idea. No, I fucking love it._

I was interrupted from my thoughts by the sounds of my girl's quiet cry. A second later, my instincts registered her heart rate elevating, returning back to a normal pace, from the sluggish, sleep-induced one it had been in.

My head whipped around, toward the scent of salty tears, only to see Isabella sitting up in bed and staring at me with a slightly watery gaze. Her thumb stayed firmly in place in her mouth as she gave me a longing look, clearly wanting me by her side right now.

I clicked the YES button on the computer, to start the huge file transfer of the mp3s on the computer, over to Marie's Ipod, then stood from my chair and went over to Isabella. I sat down by her and she wasted no time in crawling onto my lap, pressing and snuggling her side into my chest. She sniffled and layed her head on my shoulder, a subdued look on her face.

I leaned against the headboard and wrapped my arm around her waist, holding her to me. I kissed her temple and inhaled the delicious scent of her silky hair. I wanted her to talk to me and tell me why she had woken up upset, so I gently grabbed her wrist, intent on pulling that thumb out of her mouth.

She subtly shook her head and bit down on her thumb, preventing me removing it from her mouth.

"Isabella, take that thumb out of your mouth and talk to me," I told her softly.

She silently shook her head again, without looking at me, and pressed her head onto my shoulder some more.

"Yes," I insisted.

She shook her head again, and I sighed.

I knew that she was aware during Marie's earlier punishment. I had known the entire time, and it did nothing to cause me to hesitate or stop. Isabella needed to know what would happen if she ever thought that shoplifting was a good idea.

She was obviously somewhat upset about it, though, so I needed her to talk to me. And if it's not that, that's upsetting her, then I needed to know the cause, so that I could make it better.

"Baby, what's wrong?" I asked as I lightly trailed my hand up her forearm, to her hand, and tried pulling that thumb out of her mouth again.

Her teeth had a firm hold on it, though.

She shrugged, so I asked, "Do you want to talk about it?"

She shook her head.

"Well, baby…I need you to talk. Tell me what has you so upset," I coaxed.

She shook her head. Again.

_Damn it._

I tried gently removing her thumb again, but was unsuccessful.

"Isabella, your thumb needs to come out. Now."

She shook her head again, silently telling me 'no'.

"You don't have to talk, but you _do_ need to follow your rules. It's not bedtime, and you're done with your nap. So the thumb needs to come out. Now."

She didn't respond this time, just lay snuggled into my chest…sucking on that little thumb.

I cringed and counted to ten in my head…giving her a chance to think about it and comply.

I didn't want to be firm anymore today.

I didn't want to be a 'parent' anymore today.

_Why, oh why is she choosing to test me now? Now, of all fucking times…_

I got to ten, and the thumb still hadn't come out, so I decided to keep going until I got to twenty.

At eighteen, I realized how much of a pansy I was being. That this was the line of reasoning I had followed in the beginning when I was being a neglectful softy. I remembered how that didn't help either of us in the long run. She had just grown more disobedient over time, and still ended up over my knee in the end.

"Are you going to listen and follow your simple rule, baby?" I asked, realizing that I was _still_ stalling for time with that useless question.

She didn't answer, just sucked on her thumb and stared at the pillow next to my elbow, with a relaxed, yet troubled look on her face.

I sighed and lifted my hand from it's place on her hip.

After I lightly swatted her ass, she jumped a bit and whimpered around her thumb, but still didn't remove it.

I put my hand back on her hip and repeated myself, but more firmly this time. "Are you going to listen, Isabella?"

She lifted her head from my shoulder and turned to look at me. The cold glare of her eyes betrayed the innocent look she had been sporting a second ago...sucking on her thumb, and all.

Now, both looks just contradicted each other. Her soft, pink lips were still wrapped around her small thumb for comfort purposes, but the look in her chocolate eyes while she stared at me, made her expression look mean, as her face took on an angry scowl.

I kept my expression blank.

I was in no way intimidated by her, or by any of my girls, for that matter, but from her body language, I could tell that she was getting ready to have a fit…or an outburst…or _something_, and I needed to be prepared to react to it in a calm manner.

Then she slapped me. Right across my left cheek.

It in no way hurt me, of course. I had only registered the slap by the quick motion of her hand, and the brief feeling of warmth on my face when her hand made it's intended sharp contact.

We stared at each other for six seconds before I reacted. The only reason I waited six seconds is because that's how long it took Jasper to calm my ass down and take the edge off.

I was incredibly angry with her right now, and I let her know that fact with my black stare. She shot me a glare of her own, as adrenaline coursed through her veins, while she sat on my lap and anticipated my reaction.

She suddenly found herself laying flat on her belly, in front of my knees on the bed. When she registered the feeling of the soft cotton of her dress raising up off her thighs, then being bunched up at the small of her back, she finally took that damn thumb out of her mouth and screamed, "No, I'm sorry!"

"I am too," I stated, my voice rough with anger.

I kept one hand firmly on the small of her back, holding her still against the mattress, and keeping that pretty dress out of my way.

When she felt her little panties slipping down to the tops of her thighs, she started kicking and repeated her apology, "Edward, I'm sorry!"

I swatted her bare ass. "That's enough. You stay still and remember…" I trailed off as she clenched her eyes shut and whimpered. "Keep your hands out of my way," I warned through gritted teeth.

I remembered the number I had chosen before…_her_ number. Five. So I gave her five very quick, very hard smacks while she lay before me, blatantly ignoring my warning to stay still and squirming around anyway.

She was sobbing by the time I was through...all of two seconds later. I didn't take the time to cool the hurt for her, before I slipped her panties back over her now pink bottom, and smoothed her dress back down over her thighs.

I looked away from her, and over to the desk, checking on the progress of the mp3 file transfer on my laptop.

I got up from the bed then, and was going to head back over to the desk, but stopped when I saw Isabella's hand move behind her.

_Oh, no you don't…_

"No, Isabella," I scolded in a firm tone.

She dropped her hand back down to her side and cried some more at me denying her the privilege of rubbing the hurt out.

_Too fucking bad._

I walked over to the desk and took my seat before calling out to her. "Come here. Now."

I heard the bed creak a second later as she crawled to the edge and hopped off the bed.

I heard the soft padding of her feet as she walked the short distance over to me.

When she was standing beside me, I still didn't look at her as she tried to swallow back sobs in an effort to calm down. I paid attention to the instructions on the laptop for a few seconds, before addressing her.

When I turned to face her, I saw her flushed face and tear stained cheeks. Her right hand was fisting the fabric of her dress by her leg and she was looking at her new teddy bear that was sitting on the desk on the opposite side of her, next to my laptop.

"Look at me, Isabella," I demanded.

Her eyes shot over to mine.

"You are in trouble because you hit me. Now, I know that's not one of your fucking rules, but I figured it would have been obvious. No. Hitting. There…you have a new rule. Congratulations. Now get your little ass in that corner, young lady," I told her while pointing to the corner right next to the desk.

I wanted her within arm's reach, so I chose that one.

She hiccupped and sobbed before she asked somewhat curiously, "Why?"

I gritted my teeth and growled out, "Because I said so."

Her eyes widened at my growl, before she turned and walked a few steps to her designated corner. She stood there and stared at me for a second, sniffling and wiping the tears off her cheeks.

I was fixing to yell at her to turn around and face the damn wall, when I suddenly remembered her earlier confusion with this 'time out' business. I realized then, that she probably didn't know what she was supposed to do, exactly…or why she was standing by a corner. In fact, the concept probably seemed pretty odd to her.

_Ugh, why couldn't my Bella just have had a normal fucking childhood?_

I spoke in a calm voice then, resigned to the fact that I was going to have to explain this simple concept to her. "Isabella, you are in time out," I informed her.

She gasped, then cried some more, but I continued on, knowing that my explanation would calm her…somewhat.

"You need to turn around and face that wall, like you did earlier today. Don't look anywhere but at that damn wall, and stay still. I will let you know when you can come out of the corner."

She looked adorably confused and hesitated for a second while she wiped at her eyes. She sniffled then, and finally turned around, looking at the wall.

I turned my attention back to the laptop and started to finish up the task of putting music on Marie's Ipod for her. I kept an eye on the little clock in the corner of the screen as I moved certain files around.

Two minutes later, Isabella had stopped crying. The only sound in the room was the clicking of the keyboard and mouse, and her occasional sniffle. She crossed her arms over her chest and laid her forehead on the wall. A few seconds later, she stuck her nose into the corner, then took it out and lightly thumped her forehead on the wall.

"Stop it…"

Her head became still then, and her feet started moving. They shuffled along the hardwood floor, before she stomped them a couple of times. Then she stood on her tippy-toes and hopped a bit.

"Isabella, stop it…"

She stopped hopping, but her feet kept moving. She went up on her tippy-toes, then rolled her feet flat, before raising them again.

"I told you to be still, now stop it."

She huffed and stilled all movement.

Twenty-three seconds later, she began humming.

I reached out and firmly swatted her ass.

_See? I knew I wanted her within arm's reach for a reason._

She gasped. "Edward, owwie…stop," she whimpered out.

"Are you tired of getting spankings, Isabella?" I barked out in a drill sergeant fashion.

"Yes!" she barked back, and I, all of a sudden, had an image of a fucking boot camp enter my mind, with the way she responded.

"You'll _stop_ getting them when you _start_ following the rules," I informed her.

She turned and looked at me then.

I gave her a hard look. "Eyes forward, Isabella."

She turned back to the wall and scowled at it before clenching her fists at her sides, stomping her foot and screaming in the back of her throat with her mouth closed.

I spanked her again. "That's enough," I told her, referring to her developing temper tantrum.

"Owww…" she began to cry.

I looked back to the clock and saw that her five minutes was up, but decided that she had just earned two more. It would give her some time to calm down. Then once she was calm, she could talk to me and tell me what it was that had her so upset in the first place.

Soon, two minutes was over and she was quiet once again.

"You can get out of the corner now," I told her conversationally as I was finishing up my task on the laptop.

She immediately turned around and walked over to grab her new teddy bear and MagnaDoodle off the desk in front of me. She walked back to the bed and placed her toys on the mattress, before going to the flat screen and turning it on. She quickly scanned the movie shelf and picked out Over The Hedge before she brought it over to me, where I still sat at the desk watching her, and asked, "Please?"

I took the dvd from her hands and placed it on the desk. She started the faint beginnings of what I now knew to be a whine, so I said, "Stop it," in a firm voice, cutting off all her attempts at whining to get her way.

She looked at me questioningly, so I responded with, "We need to talk."

She didn't agree, or disagree. Just stared at me. After a minute, she spoke.

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

"I got tears on my face."

I nodded and stood. "I'll go get you a warm washcloth."

I made quick work in the bathroom, drenching a soft cloth in hot water, and wringing it out before walking back into the bedroom. Isabella was sitting on the bed Indian style, with her bear in her lap, staring at me.

I gave her a tissue to blow her nose. She blew it and handed it back to me.

I gave her the warm washcloth to wipe her face. She ran it over her face and handed it back to me.

After I discarded those two items, I joined her on the bed. We sat Indian style facing each other, our knees touching.

I had the imminent feeling that this was going to be an important discussion…or at least a heavy one.

I kept eye contact, and she did as well. Neither of us seemed willing to break it.

I broke the silence first. "What's on your mind, baby?"

"Do you like givin me spankins?" she asked curiously.

I shook my head immediately.

_God, no._

"No. No, absolutely not."

"How come you do it?"

"Because I love you, and you need it."

"How come I need it?"

"So you can learn your boundaries and right from wrong behavior."

"Why can't you teach me a different way?"

_Jesus Christ, we really are gonna play twenty questions, aren't we..._

"I _am_ teaching you in other ways," I pointed out, before reminding her, "You've had other punishments besides a spanking, Isabella."

"How come Marie's in trouble?"

"She's not."

Isabella gazed at me skeptically. "You were a meanie to her when she got spankins."

"I was hard on her because of what she did."

"What she do?"

"Steal."

"Is Bella in trouble?"

"No."

"Am I in trouble?"

"You were, but that's over."

"Only Marie stole, so only she's in trouble?"

I nodded. "Yes."

"But how come you were a meanie, though?"

I cringed."Because if she had went through with it, then you and Bella…all three of you would be in jail right now. And I can't allow that to happen. Ever," I told her with conviction.

She nodded and stared at me for eight seconds.

"I know what Marie told you."

"What did she tell me?"

"Don't play stupid, Edward," she shot back.

I was taken aback by her words and the memory of what Marie had told me in the car.

"What…that you've killed before, Isabella?" I asked.

She nodded.

"Who and why?" I asked her bluntly.

"That's not gonna be a problem, is it?" she hedged lightly.

I was quick to respond. "That depends. Why did you kill in the past?"

"Don't worry about it, my Edward," she placated me.

I subtly shook my head. "I'm worrying," I assured her.

Her eyes flashed with anger then. "Don't."

"Why?" I demanded.

Then she smirked. "B'cuz I said so," she said in a mocking tone, referring to all of the times I had said that to her.

"Isabella-" I said firmly, before she cut me off.

"It's none of your fucking business," she told me in a sudden curt tone.

I raised my eyebrows at her, "Young lady, you had better watch your tone with me," I warned.

We were quiet then and continued to stare at each other.

Thirty-seven seconds later, she narrowed her eyes again and said in a hard voice, "Edward, you are _mine_."

My eyes widened a bit at her statement, but I nodded and hummed in response.

"How come you said that Marie belongs to you? _I_ belong to you. You are _mine_," she demanded.

"Isabella, you three share the same body. All three of you belong to me," I quickly informed her.

She was obviously upset by extreme emotions of jealousy, and I had to tame those for her. I should have thought of this earlier…I fucking knew that Isabella was my possessive baby, but I didn't think of that when I was reaffirming to Marie who it was that she fucking belonged to, so that she wouldn't ever try to run from me again.

Her features softened back to normal then, and her little fingers began trailing along her bear's furry arm.

"But you are mine," she reminded me after a few seconds.

"Yes."

"Me and Bella and Marie belong to you, but you only belong to _me_," she stated.

"Okay," I placated her.

"Kay," she said lightly.

After a minute, I asked, "Isabella?"

"Huh?"

"Is that what was bothering you?"

She nodded and started sucking on her pink lips.

Top then bottom.

Bottom, then top.

I shook my head. "Don't be upset, baby...I'll always be your's," I assured her softly.

"I know," she said in a sure tone, then crawled into my lap and kissed my cheek.

"Edward?"

I kissed her hair. "Yes, baby?"

"Fuzzy bear's tummy hurts," she said in a concerned tone.

I became worried by that statement. Not about the damn bear, but about my little girl. She's done this before…telling me that her dolly was sick, when it was actually her that was getting sick.

"Umm…where does his tummy hurt at?" I asked lightly, trying to play along.

She laid the bear on the bed and put her palm to his lower abdomen. "Right there."

I nodded and breathed in her scent, trying to figure out what would cause my angel's lower abdomen to hurt.

"Well, angel…umm, does he have any owwies there? Did somebody or something accidentally hit him?"

She shook her head.

"Does he…have to go potty?" I hedged, thinking of maybe a far-fetched bladder infection.

"Mm-mm," she muttered as she shook her head.

"Does Fuzzy bear's tummy feel sick?" I asked, thinking on the possibilities of nausea or diarrhea.

"No…" she mumbled.

"Just hurts?"

"Yah-huh…just hurtin him," she stated with a slight nod.

"Hmmm…"

Isabella shrugged then, and got off my lap, leaving the bear on the bed by my side. She crawled off the bed and went back to the desk, picking up the discarded movie when she got there.

She brought Over The Hedge back over to me, then asked again, "Please?"

"Of course," I told her while I stood from the bed.

I put the movie in the dvd player while Isabella got situated on the floor with her pink MagnaDoodle and baby doll. She left the bear on the bed, saying that he didn't feel good, so he needed to lay down. I just nodded and went along with it, but kept that new worry at the forefront of my mind.

_Was it really Isabella's abdomen that was hurting?_

While the movie played, that question kept running through my mind. The possibility was beginning to make me anxious and frantic with worry but Jasper helped take the edge off so that I could appear calm and relaxed for my girl.

Isabella changed her doll's clothes, once again, then paid attention to the movie while sucking on a ring pop that I had brought up here for her from the kitchen. The ring was attached to her thumb, as she kept an insistent sucking motion on it, her cheeks hollowing out sometimes.

I layed on the bed and read, keeping an eye on Isabella. She would draw some, then she would pay attention to the movie. It seemed to be a pattern. She couldn't focus on just one thing. She had to constantly multi-task.

I check the clock about forty minutes into the movie, and saw that it was 5:30 now. I would soon need to make some dinner, but I had no clue as to what to make.

_Hmm…maybe I could just stick a frozen pizza in the oven, or something?_

No…she needs a complete and balanced meal.

_Well, shit._

I sighed as Isabella suddenly stood up.

"Edward, can I change? 'Cause ya know…frilly fuckin dresses just aren't my thing," Marie told me with an adorably scrunched up nose.

I nodded. "Of course, baby."

She went off to the closet and I picked up Isabella's toys off the floor, then put them away. I left the movie playing in the backround and started trying to come up with some ideas for dinner.

_Maybe since Marie is out now, I won't have to cook anything?_

Soon, Marie emerged from the walk-in closet in a tight black tank top and worn out, faded jeans that hung low on her hips, exposing about an inch of creamy skin between the bottom of her small shirt and the top of her low-rise jeans.

_Fucking sexy._

She was putting on a small black belt, to help keep those loose pants up, when the door bell rang. I was too focused on Marie in that sexy little outfit to notice anyone coming up to the house, but now I knew exactly who was at my door.

Jacob Black.

Arriving without a fucking phone call.

And damn it, I probably can't beat his ass because Marie will want him here. After all, I did promise her that she could still see him…just over here. Now I was wishing I had made no such promise, because he hadn't even entered the house yet, and I could already smell his stink and read his juvenile thoughts and I just wanted him fucking gone already.

_Fucking hell._

I found myself wondering how long this visit would last.

Marie didn't pay any attention to the door bell, just came and sat in my lap, Bella's Nintendo DS and new gamein her hands. I watched as Marie powered on the small blue toy and stuck in the tiny game. She had an excited smile on her face, but just as the game was starting up, Jasper appeared at our bedroom door.

"Door is for you, Marie. You have company," he informed her politely.

She nodded absentmindedly and got off my lap. "Thanks, Jazz," she mumbled in response, never taking her eyes off the screen as she began pressing buttons.

"Marie, pause the game and watch where you're going when you walk down the steps," I told her firmly.

She turned and winked at me. "Sure thing, boss," she said with a small smile.

I chuckled at her and quickly followed down the steps, just to make sure that she did as she was told and didn't end up falling down the stairs and breaking her neck, or something...knowing all the while that it was a very real possibility. Because my Bella is just that lucky.

When we arrived downstairs, Marie looked up from her game and saw Jacob.

He smiled at her as his eyes roamed over her body, focusing on her tight shirt. Ridiculous fantasies were already beginning to cloud his mind.

I glared at him, reminding him that I'm a motherfucking _mind reader_, so I knew exactly what he was thinking. And also, that I don't give a goddamn about some stupid treaty from a hundred years ago, and that I will not hesitate to snap his mangy, disgusting flea-bitten neck.

Marie smiled and put Bella's toy down on the coffee table, then turned to face Jacob. "I'm sick."

He shrugged. "That's okay."

"Yeah, okay." She grabbed his hand and started hauling him over to the garage. "Let's go shoot some motherfuckin hoops…" she trailed off suggestively.

He followed her like a lovesick puppy in heat with nauseating dog breath. "Awesome."

_Ugh, kill me now._

I wanted to keep my promise to Marie, so I didn't intrude on their 'bonding', or whatever that shit was, and stayed in the house as I watched them go out the back door. I kept a close watch though, and I could hear everything that was being said, not to mention every vile thought that ran through that mutt's mind.

They played basketball for a bit and my mind drifted back to dinner when I noticed that the time was now 6:00. It would be getting dark any time now, so that would give me an excuse to make Marie come back inside soon.

When I had narrowed down my decision to just puss out and order a pizza, or some Chinese, I noticed the very subtle change in Marie. The change that let me know that she was not Marie anymore, but that she was, in fact, my little Isabella. I could tell by the way she was jumping. They were on the trampoline now. Marie liked to jump high, while Isabella was the flexible one and loved doing somersaults and flips on that thing. With her first flip, I knew. And I became a bit worried.

I wanted to keep my promise, so I didn't go out there, just stood watch and wondered how Jacob would handle Isabella.

He stopped jumping, and said, "So anyway…I just can't believe you live here now."

Isabella stopped jumping as well, and sat across from him, staring, but not talking.

Her eyes quickly scanned the backyard, obviously looking for me. A split second later, our eyes made contact, but she broke it just as quickly, so that she could go back to staring intently at the boy in front of her.

"You know, you can always come back to the Rez, you haven't been by in a while," he reminded her.

She stared.

"And you don't have to tell Cullen anything, about the stuff. It's none of his business, anyway…that shit is just between us," he told her, referring to their recent drug activity.

Isabella continued to stare and I felt my anger spike and my chest began to rumble.

Jasper came to stand by my side then, and watched the scene with me as he regulated my emotions so that I wouldn't go out there kill my girl's best friend right before her eyes. Because, that wouldn't be good. And I knew that Marie was watching.

"Why you so quiet?" he whispered to her after a minute.

She shrugged and stared.

Jasper's thoughts kept me informed of Isabella's emotions at all times. She wasn't scared. No…in fact, she was becoming hostile. But for reasons that I, obviously, didn't understand.

Out of nowhere, Jacob said, "You know, Quil's offer still stands."

"Offer…" Isabella softly whispered in question.

I growled, knowing what this _offer_ was before he spoke it. Jasper put his hand on my shoulder then, his influence becoming stronger with our skin to skin contact.

"Yeah, you know…" he trailed off suggestively.

She subtly shook her head, but her gaze had hardened into somewhat of a glare, so I assume Marie was informing her of this…fucking _offer_, by way of their special communication now.

"Jesus, Marie - you can be so goddamn forgetful," he admonished her.

Isabella's eyes flashed with anger, but she didn't speak, so he decided to remind her of this so-called _offer_.

"He's not stupid, he knows an addict when he sees one. You're fuckin hard-up, huh? You want a joint, right now, don't you?" he taunted.

Isabella kept staring.

At her silence, he continued. "Yeah…I know. I can tell. He told me to remind you of his deal. You keep him satisfied…" he trailed off suggestively, before smiling and shrugging a bit, "and he'll keep you supplied."

I growled. "I can't believe he just said that. To my fucking five year old. Granted, he doesn't know that it's her, but regardless, Bella is _my_ woman, goddamn it, and I'll be damned if anyone is going to get away with suggesting that kind of vile thing to her. Prostitution for drugs? I'll fucking kill him! Him _and_ Quil. What the hell kind of name is Quil anyway? I'll be doing that motherfucker a favor by putting him out of his misery with a stupid name like that. His parents obviously hated him at birth, and I can see why. I swear to God-"

"Will you _please_…calm the fuck down?" Jasper asked, exasperated, interrupting my rant.

Before I could respond with an apology, or some witty remark about how that was _his_ job, I saw Isabella smirk. And it wasn't like Marie's smirk, it was one all her own. It looked almost adorable, and it would have been, if I wasn't aware of her emotions right now, compliments of Jasper.

Anger and hostility.

She crawled over and sat down next to him.

He smiled at her, thinking that she was making some sort of sexual advance on his ugly, mangy ass.

_Dream the fuck on, mutt._

She smiled back.

_What game is she playing at…?_

She leaned in close to his ear, immediately made eye contact with me from behind his shoulder, and began talking in her sweet, child-like voice. It was a soft, murmuring tone. Like she was sharing a secret.

"If you ever suggest that Bella should satisfy your friend so that she can be supplied with weed, again...then I will take Marie's pink rubber cock and shove it up your tight little asshole. Make you my bitch. Bella doesn't fuck for drugs, or money, and neither do I. Don't _fuck_ with me, Jacob Black, because I will return the favor…" she trailed off suggestively.

_Holy shit._

"Holy shit," Jasper said from his spot beside me.

_That's what I said._

Isabella broke eye contact with me then, and backed away to look at Jacob.

His face, once lustful, had been morphed into one shock and slight disgust.

"Who _are_ you?" he asked incredulously.

"I am not your friend," she said with simple certainty and a shake of her head, before she climbed off of the trampoline.

I opened the back door then. "Isabella, it's time to come inside, baby," I called out to her.

She nodded and came running over to me.

I caught her in my arms and tucked her into my side. I turned back to the trampoline to see Jacob jumping off of it, onto the ground.

"Jacob, you need to go home," I told him with finality, before turning Isabella around and sending her inside with a soft pat to her bottom.

"No, wait - hold the fuck on! _Who_ is that?" he demanded.

I watched as Isabella entered the kitchen, before I closed the back door and turned back to Jacob with a glare. "That's _mine_, is what that is. This does not concern you, mutt. Call before you come over next time. The only one around that's even remotely interested in seeing your filthy ass, is Marie," I informed him.

He looked at me with disbelief. "Did you _hear_ what she just fucking said to me? She wants to shove a goddamn dildo up my ass, for Christ's sakes!"

"Like you wouldn't love it," I shot back.

"That's sick, Cullen."

Jasper came outside then, his nostrils flaring a tiny bit from my girl's scent. "It's time for you to go home, boy," he told Jacob in his southern accent.

"The hell it is-" he began before I interrupted him.

"It _is_! Marie is not around anymore, so that means you don't need to be here, either."

"What the hell is going on?" he asked, almost desperately.

"Nothing!" I yelled. "Nothing that concerns you. When will you get it through that vile head of yours, that Bella is _mine_? Her health, her alternates, her body…none of it concerns you," I informed him harshly.

"She is _mine_, _my_ responsibility, _not_ yours! Fucking leave already!" I growled.

"Calm down, man," Jasper placated me with waves of calm.

But I didn't want to fucking calm down. I wanted to rip Jacob's head off.

That was before I heard Isabella's whimpered cry.

I quickly turned to Jasper and stated in our frequency, "Get rid of him."

At Jasper's nod, I rushed into the house and looked for Isabella. My eyes frantically searched the kitchen and front room, coming up blank before I heard her cry again, making me decide to just pull in her scent to identify her whereabouts.

That's when I smelt it. Dead blood.

_Oh, shit…_

My Bella's body had begun menstruating.

* * *

A/N:

What will Edward do? He's a vampire, he's drawn to blood...but _that kind _of blood? Will he be able to comfort Isabella? O god...will he have to explain tampons to her? Hahaha. Ha. Hahahaha.

O, and Isabella...a murderer _and_ a sodomizer? Fucking hell, what is the world coming to?


	33. Bloody Misunderstandings

EPOV

I rushed up the steps to our bedroom and, in a flash, I was right outside the closed door to our bathroom. Even though Isabella's cries were fairly quiet, I could hear them loud and clear and it was stressing me the fuck out.

_She must be so confused…_

I picked up the faint scent of my Bella's dead blood, and swallowed against the slight coating of venom on my tongue. I was thankful that this wouldn't pose any real problem for me, or my family. I have been close with Bella during her cycle many times in the past, and my siblings have attended high school numerous times where countless teenage girls were menstruating at any given time.

Dead blood is not a healthy sustenance, nor is it flavorful for a vampire. It's just not _appealing_. It is dead, expired…useless. Like soured milk for humans; It was once healthy and tasteful, but as soon as the expiration date passes, you pour that shit down the drain.

She sniffled and I heard her whisper out my name before her cries grew a bit louder. She wasn't holding them back anymore.

"Isabella, baby…" I said against the door, to let her know that I was here.

"Edward?" she sniffled.

"I'm here baby girl…it's okay," I cooed softly to her through the wooden door.

"Huh-uh, Edward…noooo s'not," she insisted through her cries.

She sounded so devastated.

_My poor baby._

"Ed-ward, help…me," she hiccupped and sobbed.

Anxiety quickly consumed me at her cry that I 'help her', but I was able to tame it. Or, Jasper was, anyway. My breath rushed out before I composed myself and spoke again.

"Isabella, let me in," I coaxed with a soft knock on the door.

She gasped suddenly. "But I'll get in trouble!" she insisted in a rushed voice.

I furrowed my brow. "No…no, you won't, angel. Why would you be in trouble?" I asked curiously.

"B'cuz I'm nakey b'cuz my panties, Edward…they got blood on 'em," she said through her cries.

I smiled, glad she had remembered that particular rule, even though it was unnecessary right now. "Just let me in sweetheart…you won't be in trouble. I promise," I told her.

"No spankins?" she asked hopefully in a pitifully small voice.

"None," I assured her.

I heard her feet softly padding across the tiled floor, then the door's lock clicking open. Isabella cracked open the door and peeked up at me through wet, long eyelashes. I pushed the door open the rest of the way as she began backing away. I saw her tear stained face and tried to stay concentrated on that, alone, as I stepped into the bathroom and closed the door behind me.

She stood before me, crying, in only that tight black tank top…and that's all. Her jeans and panties lay crumpled on the tiled floor beside the sink with a few small squares of blood-stained toilet paper on top of the discarded clothes.

Isabella began wiping the tears off her rosy cheeks with her little fists as she continued to cry. I strode over to her and hugged her to me, kissing her forehead and shushing her.

"Shhh…baby, it's okay. Really," I consoled her.

She looked up at me with watery, confused eyes. "Edward, I'm blee-eedin…" she sobbed out.

I nodded. "I know."

"But _why_?" she asked, perplexed. Then she shook her head as a sob tore through her throat, shaking her little body. I held her tighter to me. "I promise I wasn't a bad girl…" she stressed as tears streamed down her pink cheeks.

I felt so bad for her. She obviously didn't know what a menstrual cycle was, and had only ever associated blood on her panties with abuse.

I kept my anger in check and thanked Jasper in our frequency for helping me keep calm and composed for my little girl right now. I could feel his influence, and gratefully soaked it all up. I knew that without him, I would be extremely angry, stressed out and panicking right now.

Isabella's assumption that this was happening to her because she had been 'bad', only served to remind me of her abuse. I felt the inevitable and immense anger begin to tighten and coil my muscles before I could feel Jasper's effort to tame it.

"Sweetheart, that has nothing to do with it," I assured her with conviction, before gently running my fingers through her long hair and shushing her again.

After a minute, I loosened my hold on her and looked into her eyes. I kissed her runny little button nose, then whispered, "Let's get you cleaned up…"

She nodded and sniffled in response.

"Edward…make it stop," she pleaded desperately as I unwrapped my arms from around her body.

"I can't baby girl," I said sadly, reaching for her little blood-spotted panties.

She cried, looking at me with confused, pleading eyes. "But _why_?"

I filled the sink with cold water, plugging the small drain. I put the panties in there to soak out the blood stains, then turned back to Isabella.

"Isabella, this is what happens when you grow up," I informed her gently.

She shook her head and insisted, "But I'm not all growed up."

I nodded and picked up her jeans to inspect them for any stains. "I know, but Bella is, angel," I told her pointedly.

Her cries were quieting down now. Once I was sure that the jeans were stain free, I set them aside for her to put back on later. I picked up the bloody toilet paper that lay on the floor, and threw it in the toilet, then flushed it. Isabella grabbed a wad of toilet paper, then wiped the tears away from her flushed face and blew her little nose with it. She followed my lead then, and flushed that as well.

I sighed. Now, to clean up Isabella.

"Edward, why? But, how come?" her voice cracked.

I smiled softly at her and kissed her forehead, glad she had stopped crying.

"When you grow up, baby...you start bleeding like this once a month, every month, so that maybe one day you can have babies," I told her softly with a smile, giving her the simple explanation.

She looked adorably confused. "But I don't want babies…and I don't wanna bleed," she informed me matter-of-factly.

I nodded in understanding. "Well, baby girl…this is what happens to Bella once a month. She knows what's going on, and she knows how to handle it," I assured her before hesitantly asking, "Do you think Bella can come out now, sweetheart? She'll know what to do," I added quickly.

I knew that there was no way I was getting Marie to come out, so Bella was my only hope right now.

Isabella slowly shook her head, and sniffled before she told me, "Won't come out, though."

"Why?" I asked curiously.

Bella coming back into awareness right now would solve this problem really fucking quickly. But apparently, my life is never that easy and everything always has to be annoyingly complicated.

"B'cuz of Daddy…" she trailed off, reminding me that today had been a therapy day, so that meant that my Bella probably wouldn't be around for a little while longer.

I nodded and whispered, "Okay, then."

After a few seconds of silence, I decided be a fucking man about this and not show any weakness. At all. Any nervousness on my part would only add to Isabella's fear. And believe me...she was fucking scared right now. I could smell the sweet adrenaline coursing through her delectable little veins right at this moment.

"Well, that's alright sweetie pie. I'll take care of you," I told her confidently, with a small smile. "I have to get you cleaned up and then we'll see about a pad, or something…do you think you can be a big girl for me?" I asked.

Instead of answering me with her usual confidence and saying "yes, I'm a big girl', she just looked up at me with big chocolate doe eyes, her little bottom lip trembling. It broke my heart.

"Edward, when's it gonna stop?" she asked sadly, then rubbed her bare thighs together, reminding me that I had to get her cleaned up.

I sighed. "Umm…" I hedged, before finally saying, "in about a week, baby."

This brought on a new round of fresh tears.

I just sighed and kissed her forehead, then shushed her, because I didn't know what else to do.

I squeezed her hand, before letting her go and reached for the roll of toilet paper sitting on the counter.

When I looked back over at my little girl, I saw a tiny, little red bead of blood trailing down her inner thigh, and it suddenly looked so fucking enticing. Sexy.

_Oh, God…so delicious._

The scent of this blood may not be very appealing, but I didn't say a damn thing about the _sight_ of it.

The sight of her blood, dead or not, that close to my Bella delicious pussy was enough to make me weak in the knees. I closed my eyes briefly as the fake calm washed over me, courtesy of my favorite brother. My breath slightly hissed out as I fully regained my control. The control that had been slipping a lot lately.

I swallowed back some venom before I reached for Isabella and said, "C'mere, baby."

She immediately stepped into my arms, so I lifted her off the floor, keeping her at arms length, and took her the short distance over to the toilet. I gently sat her down on the seat.

She looked up at me curiously, before she sniffled and said, "Don't gotta potty, Edward."

_Christ, she's adorable._

I chuckled. "Yeah, I know that. Just sit here while I clean you all up, and then I can go get a pair of clean panties for you to put on, angel."

She nodded and watched as I knelt down in front of her. She kicked her legs out a bit while I wet a small wad of toilet paper in hot water, then brought it to her leg. I sat back on my heels, then gently grabbed an extended ankle and wiped at the tiny trail that the little bead of blood had made down her smooth leg.

When I got up to her knee, I looked up at Isabella's face. I wasn't sure how to say this without sounding like a pervert, or worse…one of her abusers. But after a second, I came to the conclusion that there really was no way around it.

So, I gave her my best reassuring smile, and said in a calm, soft voice… "Spread your legs, Isabella," then gritted my teeth at how _wrong_ that sounded.

_Fuck me._

I was surprised when she immediately complied. No hesitance, just complete obedience. Then I remembered why…Bella told me that she's been fucking 'owned' and abused before. Isabella views me as her goddamn 'owner', and will always give me what I want, willingly, in what she views as a sexual situation.

I was suddenly so damn angry right now, and wished that she had fought me on my request for her to spread her legs…like any other normal little girl would have.

She put the heels of her palms on the toilet seat at her sides for support, then scooted back a bit, before spreading her thighs apart a few inches, giving me access to the rest of her soft skin. She kept up her light, kicking rhythm with the other leg as she hummed lightly…watching me intently the entire time.

I stopped breathing when I caught a glimpse of her slightly blood-stained, bare pussy lips. The monster in me began purring…

_Fucking **beautiful**…and all for me. I want to lick and kiss and suck-_

Shit.

_Mmm, that'll clean her up real nice._

No.

_Oh, fuck yes…_

I concentrated on Isabella's soft humming and finished ridding her left leg of that small blood trail. I stopped when I got up to her inner thigh, then wet a brand new wad of toilet paper, started on her other leg, and worked my way down to her right ankle.

I was silent and focused on the task of cleaning up my _five year old's_ skin the entire time.

She hummed while staying completely focused on my hands and what they were doing the entire time.

When I was done, I dropped the two bloody wads of toilet paper between her slightly spread legs, into the toilet bowl, and reached behind her to flush it. When I looked up at Isabella's face, she was looking at me with an unreadable expression on her face.

I stood then, so that I wouldn't be basically eye-level with that beautiful and bare and blood-stained and lickable, tasty little pussy anymore.

"What's up, baby girl?"

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"You not gonna hurt me?"

I knew what she was talking about and I just subtly shook my head. "No, baby…I'm not," I assured her quietly, then turned and walked to the sink.

"Why?" she asked curiously.

I lifted her soaked panties out of the cold water in the sink, unplugged the drain, and started wringing them out.

"Because I love you," I responded casually.

"But you had a lotta fun lickin on Bella's cuntie the other night, though," she said conversationally.

_OhMyFuck…!_

My head whipped around in her direction at that comment.

She was still sitting on the toilet, palms at her sides on the seat, looking at me calmly. No more tears, not even the possessive anger I had come to expect. Just…slight curiosity.

I cleared my throat and hesitated with a shrug, "Uhmm…"

She slightly cocked her head to the side. "How come?"

So I went with the truth, and admitted in a quiet voice, "Because I love her…"

I don't know what I expected from Isabella, but her response didn't disappoint.

She just shrugged lightly, then went back to kicking out her feet casually, looking at her lap. "Kay…"

I breathed a sigh of relief and nodded, "Okay."

She looked back up at me and nodded with a small smile then repeated, "Kay."

In that moment, I knew her trust in me was becoming stronger. Maybe she wouldn't keep feeling the need to test me while she's in the bathtub anymore.

"But how come you lick on Bella and not me and Marie?" she asked, keeping eye contact.

_Well, damn._

I kept Isabella's wet little panties balled up in my fist as I walked back over to the toilet and squatted back down in front of my ever-curious little angel. Her eyes followed me until I was, once again, eye level with her.

"Because, baby…you are a little girl. You are _my_ little Isabella. And I am a grown up. I'm a man, sweetheart. Men don't do that to little girls. It's wrong. It's bad. It's ucky," I explained, even throwing in her special word, 'ucky' so that she would understand better.

She furrowed her brow in confusion, then. "But how come? Growed-ups like tasting my little kike cuntie-"

"That's enough," I cut her off in a curt tone, suddenly overcome with my anger. Yet again.

She hesitated, "B-But-"

I shook my head and gave her a hard look. "No…" I trailed off.

She was quiet then, waiting on some kind of response from me. I waited for Jasper's fake calm to consume me before I attempted to speak again. This was going to be a difficult conversation, I just knew it.

I took a deep and calming breath, then concentrated on Isabella's deep chocolate depths. I decided to keep my eyes trained there the entire time, just so that I could keep my focus and keep in mind that she really is just a baby. Just five years old…and very confused about sexuality.

"First…the word is _Jewish_, Isabella. And if I have to remind you again, then you're going to take another little trip to the corner for a time out," I warned.

Her eyes widened a bit.

"Do you understand?"

She nodded. "Yeah…"

I sighed. "Alright. And second…what I said before is true. Grown ups don't do that to little girls-"

She cut me off. "Yes they do," she said simply.

I tried to reign in my frustration. I couldn't believe we were having this conversation right now…with her bleeding, half naked, and sitting on the toilet while I squat down in front of her.

_Lovely._

"I know…I know that happened to you, baby. But the fact still remains that it shouldn't have. It should have _never_ happened. It was wrong and those were bad, mean people," I explained.

She nodded her head and hummed in agreement. "Mm-hmm…"

I nodded in return, glad that she could see reason. "Okay, so that is why I will never do that to you. Because you are a little girl, and I am a grown up. It. Is. Wrong," I stated with conviction.

"Kay…" she whispered.

Then I asked the most awkward question imaginable and I became very uncomfortable just thinking about her answer, but I had to know. It was necessary that I know her thoughts on this matter, so that I could address those too, if need be.

"Isabella…" I hedged carefully.

She stared at me, and muttered, "Hm?"

I squinted my eyes a bit, and hesitated. "Do you…do…you want me to do that?" I asked, then quickly added, "To you?"

She furrowed her brow and stared at me skeptically, before I saw something like recognition flash in her eyes. A moment later she answered with what I recognized as a very scripted, very rehearsed answer.

"Whatever pleases you," she told me with uncertain certainty. If that's even possible.

_See? She thinks I'm her fucking **owner**._

Yes, we will definitely have to work on that.

Now, I've been thinking a lot about this ever since the other night when my Bella explained to me a little about Isabella. She told me that the statement "you are mine" means something completely different to her, than it does to my Bella, or even Marie, for that matter.

Isabella has proven to be irrationally jealous and extremely possessive, so I have to be sensitive in handling this particular issue. I can't just come right out and tell her, "I'm not your owner. You don't belong to me." She would throw a fit, she'd be devastated…she would think that I was rejecting her. She wouldn't understand at all. The fact that she 'belongs' to me seems to be a very vital piece of information for her...something that she clings to.

So I have decided to approach this a different way. A way, in which, I don't change a motherfucking thing. I just go about continuing to do what I'm doing…act normal, if you will, and in the process, I will be showing Isabella that I am not _that_ type of 'owner', and that she belongs to me in a very different way. A non-sexual way.

It will take time.

It will take trust.

And it will be a pain in my ass.

But I love her, and I'd do anything for my little girl.

I shook my head and whispered, "No," while keeping that vital eye contact. She kept staring at me, so I elaborated for her. "No, Isabella…that would not please me," I stated a bit firmly.

She nodded and shrugged nonchalantly, still kicking her legs out a bit. "M'kay…"

I nodded and breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay. Do you think you can sit here by yourself for a minute? I have to go to the bedroom and pick out a new pair of panties for you, then put these wet ones in the hamper," I told her while holding up the fisted panties in my hand for her to see.

She nodded.

"Don't get up now, angel. Just stay on the toilet. You're bleeding, remember? We don't want any little messes on the floor," I told her.

She nodded again and mumbled through her light humming, "I'll stay on the potty, Edward."

I stood then and brushed my lips against her forehead. "Good girl," I murmured against her skin.

I saw her smile before I turned to walk back to the bedroom.

I opened the bathroom door and closed it behind me, giving Isabella a fake sense of privacy while I hunted down a pair of panties for her. A pair of _cotton_ panties, damn it. No more lace, like the one I had balled up in my hand.

I threw the wet panties in the hamper, then went over to the dresser, and opened up my Bella's panty drawer. I quickly chose some red and white ones. It was white with little red hearts around the waist band. I smiled, knowing that Isabella would enjoy the 'pretty hearts' that I had chosen for her. I went back to the bathroom and knocked softly on the door.

"Edward?" she called out.

"It's me, baby," I assured her.

"Kay, c'min," she said.

I opened the door and walked in, closing it behind me, once again. I set the panties on the counter before eyeing the vanity drawers critically and inhaling. I was trying to pick up the scent of cotton and adhesive. You know…for feminine pads. But after three inhales, it didn't do me a damn bit of good, because all I found were q-tips, cotton balls, and some motherfucking bandaids.

I sighed.

_Fuck my life._

"Edward?"

"Hmm?" I muttered distractedly, beginning to open up random drawers in search of the damn things.

"But will you let other people taste my little cuntie?"

"No," I responded, opening yet another useless drawer.

_So many damn drawers._

Now I know what Marie was bitching about the other day when she couldn't find a single, little hair tie.

"But what about girls?" she asked, out of nowhere.

"What about them, sweetheart?" I asked as my epic search for a simple pad continued.

"Does your mommy wanna taste me?"

I slammed a drawer shut without meaning to, then turned to her, exasperated. "_What_?"

"Your mommy…and do you got any sissys? Growed up girls can hurt lil girls too," she informed me from her spot on the toilet with a little nod.

I shook my head in disbelief. "No. No, Isabella. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you, or taste you, or hit you, or fuck you, I just…ugh, _none_ of that will ever happen," I told her, getting frustrated.

"Kay," she said, then went back to her soft humming.

"Okay," I responded, glad the odd subject of lesbianism was over.

I continued to open and close different drawers as I contemplated Isabella's most recent assumption to myself. Why would a woman ever want to hurt my Bella when she was younger? Especially since Jim seemed to be in charge and his views proved to be very anti-gay? So much so, that he voiced it regularly…enough for it to have been apart of my Bella's daily vocabulary as a child. Isabella is just a constant of racial slurs and prejudice terms…even with that particular rule in place, she still slips up regularly. What woman would hurt her? Could it have been the spouse of one of her abusers? A babysitter, perhaps? Or, a-

My train of thought was cut off when I opened the bottom right drawer, stocked full of pads, tampons, panty liners and feminine wipes.

I smiled.

_Jackpot._

"Alright, sweetie pie…I found what we need," I stated with some relief.

"Edward?"

I grabbed a pad and placed it on top of the clean pair of panties. "What baby?"

"When can I get off the potty?" she asked with a slight whine to her tone.

"Want doooown…" she said, then kicked her feet out some more and huffed.

Okay there was a definite whine to that statement.

"In a minute," I placated her, then reached for those wipes.

I plucked one out of the plastic package and handed it to her. She turned to look at my outstretched hand and eyed the wipe curiously.

_Okay, am I seriously going to have to explain this part?_

At her critical stare, I answered my own question. Yes. Yes I am.

"Isabella."

She looked from my hand, to my eyes. "Huh?"

"Take this and wipe," I instructed her.

She reached for the cool wipe and took it from my hand. "Wipe what?" she asked.

I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. "Your…little girl…um, parts," I told her, because I sure as hell wasn't going to say 'pussy' to my five year old.

"My cuntie or my ass?" she asked curiously, apparently trying to get a clearer answer from me.

_Christ._

I was going to have to find some new terms for my little girl to use when it comes to her body parts.

I sighed and looked at her. She had a comical, yet puzzled look on her face while holding up the wipe I had handed to her. I bit my lip to keep from smiling, then relented and said, "You know what? Both. Just go ahead and do both," I told her with a nod, then looked away from her.

I had to start putting this pad on her new panties.

I heard her response as another simple, "Kay," fell from her lips, but I didn't look to see if she complied. I had turned my back and was sitting on the floor now with the panties and the pad in my hand.

I unfolded the cotton panties and placed them on my knee, then ripped the plastic covering off of the small pad. After I unfolded it, I took the adhesive strip off the back, then attached it firmly in place to the inside of her clean panties. There were little flaps on the sides of the weird thing, so I took the adhesive strips off of those too and folded them over, onto the outside of the panties. I guess those were there to keep the pad in place, or something…hell, I don't know.

Once I had her new panties ready for her, I turned back around to look at Isabella. She had a look of utter disbelief on her face. Apparently, she had been watching me the entire time.

She looked from the panties, to me, back to the panties, then said, "Edward, I'm a big girl," she told me with conviction, looking back into my eyes.

I nodded. "Mm-hmm, I know that, baby."

She pointed to the padded panties. "I am _not_ wearin a diaper," she stated determinedly, then crossed her arms over her chest, huffing in indignation.

I chuckled at her display. "No…angel, this is not a diaper," I assured her.

She nodded. "Yah-huh Edward," she insisted.

I shook my head and pointed to the pad that I had stuck to the inside of the panties. "This is a small pad on your panties, sweetheart. It has to be there so that there won't be anymore messes," I explained.

She looked at me, almost pleading again. "But how come you can't just make the bleedin stop…" she asked in a small voice.

I sighed. "Because I just can't, angel," I told her gently.

She stared at the pad for a second, before she scrunched up her little button nose and asked with apprehension, "Will it feel weird?"

I shook my head. "No, it's thin and you probably won't even be able to tell it's there. Bella uses them, sweetheart, and _she_ doesn't think they feel like diapers…" I reasoned. "Are you going to be a big girl for me?" I asked then.

After a minute of eyeing the padded panties critically, she nodded reluctantly.

I held them out to her. "Put your panties on, angel."

She reached for them and immediately slid her feet through the proper holes, then stood from the toilet seat on slightly shaky legs, and proceeded to bring them further up until they effectively covered her luscious little ass from my view.

I stood from the floor then, and pulled her pants off of the towel rack. I handed her back the jeans from earlier.

"Pants, too," I insisted.

She took them from me. "Edward?"

"Yes?"

She looked up at me and smiled. "My panties got pretty hearts on 'em."

I smiled back, ridiculously proud that I had predicted her reaction correctly. "I know, I picked them out just for you."

That earned me a small giggle as she slipped her legs into the jeans and pulled them up and over her hips. She looked at me when she was done fastening the button, and after thirty-seven seconds, I realized that she was awaiting further instruction.

_'Owner', remember? Get with the fucking program, Cullen._

Right.

"Flush the toilet and wash your hands, baby girl. I'll be in the bedroom," I told her, then turned to leave as I heard the inevitable flush.

Back in the bedroom, I gathered up Marie's Ipod from the desk and reached for her box at the top of the closet. I stuck the Ipod and small ear bud headphones in there just as Isabella came out of the bathroom, then I put the box back in it's place on the shelf.

Isabella crawled up onto the bed, then grabbed her new teddy bear and lay sprawled out sideways across the bed, a distraught and sad look on her face. I went to her and bent over the side of the bed, softly stroking the long hair out of her face.

"What's wrong with my baby?" I cood to her softly in concern.

She held the bear to her chest and her lips pouted out as she spoke. "Tummy hurts, Edward…" she mumbled.

_Ah, of course._

That's what she was talking about earlier, when she wrongly accused Fuzzy bear of having abdominal pain. I knew it was really Isabella. My little angel has cramps.

I nodded and lightly kissed her forehead. "I know. It's normal. I can give you some medicine to help your tummy feel better after dinner. What would you like to eat, sweetheart?"

"Icecream," she mumbled.

I chuckled, "No, baby. For _dinner_," I clarified. "You can have icecream for desert," I assured her.

"Peanut butter and jelly," she told me.

"No…sorry, angel. You had peanut butter and jelly for lunch," I reminded her. "Try and think of something else," I suggested lightly.

"Umm…"

"Umm…" I mocked with a small smile, reminding her of one of our games.

She smiled. I loved the sight of it.

"You're so pretty," I whispered to her, smiling down at her.

Her smile got a little wider and she giggled, her cheeks coloring with an adorable blush and her chocolate eyes sparkling in amusement.

I quickly kissed her button nose. "Now about that dinner…" I trailed off suggestively.

She nodded. "Umm…a chicken nugget happy meal."

I knew those were her favorite, but I didn't want to leave the house, so I decided to suggest the next best thing. "Well, sweetie pie, I can't do that, but I _can_ put some chicken nuggets and fries in the oven for you," I placated her.

She nodded, obviously agreeing to those terms.

"What vegetable do you want?" I asked softly.

"Yummy corn," she told me.

I smiled, glad that she was cooperating. "Mmm, sounds yummy…" I trailed off suggestively.

She nodded in agreement. "Yah-huh…very yummy."

I kissed her nose again. It was just too fucking cute for it's own good. "You want me to put a movie on for you while I make your dinner, angel?" I asked.

She nodded.

"Which one?"

"Umm…"

I chuckled, "Umm…"

She grinned and giggled, recognizing the game. "Edward, stop!"

"Isabella, stop!" I mocked, earning me some more beautiful giggles.

My ears loved the sound.

Once her laughter died down, she answered me and said, "Big Daddy," keeping that adorable smile on her face.

I nodded my approval, then stood back up and went over to tv hanging from our wall. After turning the tv and the dvd player on, I put the movie on and waited for it to load up so that I could press the play button.

Isabella watched the process while keeping her bear cuddled close to her. I turned back to the bed and grabbed a soft pillow from it's spot by the headboard.

"Lift your head up, baby," I instructed her.

She did as she was told and I slipped that pillow under her head. She smiled as she burrowed her head into the softness then turned her attention back to the tv as the movie began playing.

"Alright sweetie…I'll be downstairs making your dinner," I informed her.

"Kay, love you…" she mumbled in response.

"I love you too," I told her, then kissed her forehead again before turning and heading out of the room.

Once I was downstairs, I went to the kitchen and began looking for a cooking sheet pan. I found it almost immediately and put six frozen chicken nuggets and a handful of crinkle-cut fries on it. After I lightly salted the potatoes, I put the pan in the oven and set the digital timer for fifteen minutes. I remembered Isabella's chosen vegetable, so I got out a small pan and set it on the stove, turning on the medium heat, just like I had seen Esme do. I opened a mini-can of whole kernel corn and dumped it in the pan undrained, then added a tablespoon of butter and slowly stirred it until the butter melted. I turned the heat on the stove down to the low setting and continued to wait for the rest of her meal to finish cooking.

While I stood there, my mind began to drift back to thoughts of Isabella. I kept an ear out for her, knowing that she wasn't very comfortable right now. She had a case of those wretched cramps, and I knew from my Bella, that her's could get pretty bad. I remembered how she would even miss school sometimes because of her cycle.

I thought back over our time in the bathrrom. How I had handled Isabella's confusion and the task of cleaning her up…the odd conversations. Her curiosity with my fantasy the other night. The 'owner' issue. I think that, overall…I did pretty well.

I remembered her unexpected and hostile comment towards Jacob this evening while they were on the trampoline together. As amusing as that was, I am going to have to address that with her. I can't have her going around, threatening that kind of thing on a regular basis. Forced sodomy. Where the hell does she come up with this shit?

_Jim._

Right. It always come back to that demented motherfucker. Did I mention how sick I am of hearing about him, and also, witnessing the results of his abuse? I seriously don't think I can handle anymore of it.

_*BEEP BEEP BEEP*_

I sighed and turned off the timer, as well as the oven. I took the sheet pan out of the oven with my girl's food on it, not even bothering with one of those useless oven mitts. After I transferred everything over to a plate and scooped some corn onto it, next to her fries, I shook the ketchup bottle and squirted some on the plate, between the meat and potatoes. After making sure everything was in place, I left the plate on the counter and ran upstairs to get Isabella.

I knew that she was hungry by her stomach's slight growl that had begun about ten minutes ago. And I knew that she was in pain, but I couldn't give her any ibuprofen on an empty stomach because that's just fucking stupid. It has a warning label about stomach bleeding on the bottle, and I'm not taking any chances when it comes to my precious Bella. She needs to eat first.

I entered the bedroom, to find Isabella laying in the same spot, thumb in her mouth.

I glared at the thumb for a second, then said, "Isabella."

"Hmm?" she hummed around it, keeping her eyes glued to the screen.

"It's time for dinner baby," I told her gently before changing it up and giving her a stern look.

I immediately hardened my voice and said, "And take that thumb _out of your mouth_," letting her know that I could still see what she was doing, even though she was obviously trying to be sneaky in hiding her mouth behind the stuffed bear's head.

She popped her thumb out of her mouth, and began to sit up.

"Edward?" she said, still keeping her eyes on the movie.

"Yes?"

She looked away from the tv then, and her eyes drifted over to me as she slid off the side of the bed. "My food done now?"

I nodded. "Yeah, come on baby," I said, then held out my hand to her. "Let's go downstairs," I suggested.

She put her hand in mine, and I gripped it as we went downstairs. Once she was seated at the table, I put her plate of food and a glass of milk down in front of her. I wanted to wait until she was at least half-way through with her food, to start talking to her, but she started the conversation first.

"Edward?" she said while dunking a fry in some ketchup.

I put my elbows on the table and placed my cheek in my hand. "Yes, baby?"

"I don't like Jacob Black," she informed me, chewing on her fry.

_Good._

I nodded. "Yeah…Isabella, I need to talk to you about that," I said pointedly.

She looked at me questioningly, silently asking me to continue, and continued devouring her small chicken nuggets.

"Umm…Isabella, why did you say what you said to him?" I asked.

She quirked an eyebrow at me and gave me a small smile, then tilted her head to the side a bit. Amusement lit up her chocolate eyes. "What did I say to him?"

I sighed. "You know what you said, baby…" I told her, not wanting to repeat it.

She nodded and swallowed. "I told him that I was gonna shove Marie's pink rubber cock up his ass if he ever said that Bella should satisfy his friend again…"

"Yes."

"Yah-huh…"

"Isabella, _why_?"

"B'cuz he was talkin 'bout getting Bella hurt," she said as if it should have been obvious, then took a drink of her milk.

I nodded. "Yes, but why did you threaten him with _that_?"

"B'cuz that's what happens to people who try to hurt Bella," she replied, then popped another fry in her mouth.

I took a chance and asked, "Like who?"

She stopped eating then and stared at me. After sucking on her lips for eight seconds, she spoke. "The only people I couldn't stop from hurting us was Daddy and the meanie doctors, Edward. But'chya know…I made sure that anyone else was sorry they _ever_ tried to hurt us," she informed me.

I just nodded. "Oh…okay."

Isabella continued to eat then, and stare at me in silence.

Three minutes later, I spoke. "Baby-"

"You wanna know how?" she asked, interrupting me.

I nodded. I wasn't surprised that she had anticipated my next question.

"I learned how to hurt people from my daddy, Edward," she informed me. "He taught me lotts…" she trailed off and stuck a ketchup-dipped nugget in her mouth.

She leaned back in her chair and stared at me as she chewed.

I was apprehensive of her future behavior..._now_, more than ever. Knowing that she had learned different techniques from that sick fuck, himself, had me extremely worried. What had she done? What is she capable of? Do I need to be this concerned with Marie as well? I know that Marie is violent and enjoys it, but…to what extent?

I leaned back in my seat and looked back over at my little angel. I was suddenly so overwhelmed with the possibilities of what was to come.

"Isabella, baby…I need you to give me that thing you threatened him with," I told her firmly.

She shook her head.

"Yes," I insisted.

I couldn't leave something like that in her hands. It's a fucking weapon to her…and it's a goddamn _dildo_, for Christ sakes.

She shrugged. "Don't know where it is."

I crossed my arms over my chest and narrowed my eyes at her. "Are you lying to me?"

Her eyes widened a bit as she shook her head, silently telling me 'no'.

"Then how do you know about it?" I pressed.

She was quick to answer. "It's Marie's and it's in a box and it's pink and it's new and I dunno why she has it and-"

I relaxed a bit. "Okay, baby," I interrupted her, believing her words.

The fact that it was new and still in it's original packaging made a lot of sense. My fingers have been inside of my Bella. And Christ, she is so fucking unbelievably tight. I shuddered, remembering that tight, wet heat.

_So fucking delicious._

Yes. She is definitely still a virgin.

I sighed. "Isabella, whether you know where it is, or not, I don't want you to ever threaten someone like that again," I told her.

She narrowed her eyes at me a bit, then looked away, focusing back on her plate and began scooping her corn around with her little spoon.

"I mean it," I insisted when she hadn't responded.

"Too bad..." she mumbled.

I raised my eyebrows at her mumbled response. "What?"

She looked back at me, noticing my slightly raised voice. "I said _too bad_," she told me with clear defiance in a louder voice.

"Isabella, listen-" I started, but she dropped her spoon and cut me off.

"No, Edward - _you_ listen. I don't care what anyone says, I will never let anyone hurt us. And Marie is the same way. I been doin this for a really long time, and I'm not gonna stop just b'cuz you said so. I know how to stop people from hurtin Bella. I know how to stab people. I know how to burn people. And I sure as hell know how to fuck someone's ass. That gets their attention real quick. Nothing you do, or say will stop me. Got it?" she finished, cocking her head to the side a bit.

I glared at her. "No, young lady…I don't _got it_, I -"

"Do you _want_ me to let people get away with hurting Bella?" she pressed, interrupting me again.

I shook my head. "No, but-"

"Then shut up and say thank you," she told me with a glare of her own.

"Isabella, that is enough!" I told her, completely fed up and exasperated.

I slammed my palm down on the table top.

"_You_ are a little girl, and you have no business being violent with anyone or anything. You shouldn't have to worry about keeping Bella safe - that is _my_ job. Bella is my mate, I will take care of her. Do you understand me? No more threatening people," I insisted.

She crossed her arms over her chest as we continued to stare each other down. We seemed to be having a lot of these staring contests lately. After a minute we both seemed a little calmer, and she spoke first, breaking the silence.

"Edward, it's my job," she insisted in a quieter voice. "B'cuz I was here first," she pointed out.

"It's not your job anymore," I told her in a quiet voice of my own.

She just shook her head. "I can't stop."

"Yes, you can," I countered quickly.

"No…I can't," she told me, sounding almost resigned.

I sighed, getting frustrated again. "Isabella, if I ever hear about you threatening someone like that again, you're going to be in a lot of trouble," I warned, trying to figure out a way to dissuade her from threatening that kind of violence. The violence that Jim had taught her.

Her eyes flashed with anger and I saw how her jaw clenched before she yelled through gritted teeth, "Fine!"

"Fine," I relented then quickly added, "And watch that attitude, young lady," I warned her.

She went back to her dinner and a minute later, I suddenly remembered the other day when we were in Port Angeles and Marie had fought off an attacker.

"Isabella…"

She looked up at me, questioningly, and stuck some corn in her mouth.

I kept eye contact and spoke carefully, with determination. "I want to make this _very clear_. If you ever find yourself, or Bella, in a situation where you know that some one is going to hurt you, and I'm not around for some reason...then I want you to do everything in your power to prevent that from happening. Kill them, if you have to," I clarified for her.

She got a wicked gleam in her eye and smiled then nodded, but I continued on before she could get her hopes up too high.

"But I absolutely will not tolerate you making random threats of violence towards people. That is what I was talking about a minute ago. Forget the threats and just _do it_, but _only_ if you're forced to," I insisted.

"Threatening people is wrong, Isabella. I wasn't kidding when I said you'd be in a lot of trouble if I heard you threaten someone again. You'll find yourself over my knee faster than the words 'I'm sorry Edward' can come out of your mouth, and I don't care how much you apologize or cry, I won't stop spanking your bare ass until I think you've learned your lesson," I threatened seriously.

I was being such a hypocrite…telling her not to threaten people with threats of my own. But I didn't know any other way to discourage that kind of behavior. I mean, if she thinks that something bad, or unpleasant, will happen to her if she does a particular thing, then that will usually dissuade her from doing it.

Right?

The threat of one of those wretched spankings should do the trick.

_I'm a fucking genius._

She just shrugged and stuck the last chicken nugget in her mouth.

When she swallowed, I insisted, "Isabella answer me and tell me what your new rule is."

I needed to know that we were clear on this subject, and that there was absolutely no confusion on her part.

"No more threatening people," she said simply.

I sighed in relief. "Good girl."

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

"My tummy hurts," she told me, then started to drink some more of her milk.

I nodded. "Save some of that milk, baby girl."

She stopped drinking and set the cup back down on the table, gazing at me curiously.

"You'll need it to take your pain medicine," I pointed out.

"Kay," she said, then began kicking her feet out a bit.

"I'll go get it," I told her, then got up from my seat at the table.

I had decided to just forget about the stupid stomach bleeding ibuprofen that I had seen my Bella take for cramps in the past, and just go with the narcotics that I knew Carlisle had in his study. There were a few different kinds, saved specifically for times when my Bella would eventually end up hurting herself in one way or another.

When I arrived at his office, I strolled in and retrieved his black medical bag out of the closet. I opened it, then grabbed a few prescription bottles, all made out to my Bella, and selected the percocet. I carefully opened the bottle and poured out one pill onto the palm of my hand, then pressed the cap back on and tossed the bottle back into the medical bag. After I put Carlisle's medical bag back in the closet, I grabbed the portable weight scale and his leather bound journal, then left the room and went back downstairs to Isabella.

She wasn't in the dining room anymore, but in the kitchen. I grabbed her glass of milk off the table and walked into the kitchen just as she was beginning to go through her lollipop stash with a smile on her face.

"Edward?"

I put her cup of milk down on the counter. "Yes baby?"

"Can I have a lolly instead of icecream?"

I nodded. "Yes sweetheart, but you need to take this medicine first, and then I need to weigh you and record it in this book," I said, holding the percocet pill out to her.

"Kay," she said, then took the pill out of my hand and popped it in her mouth.

After she used the milk to swallow it down, I placed the weight scale at her feet.

"Hop up on the scale for me, baby," I instructed gently.

She distractedly stepped onto the scale, turning her body slightly to the side, still going through the bowl full of lollipops, obviously trying to make a decision on which one to have tonight.

While I was waiting the short time for the numbers to appear, I prayed and hoped, and prayed some more, that she had gained at least one pound. I wanted it so bad, I almost couldn't see straight.

"Edward?"

The screen lit up with two numbers then. 9 and 7. So 97lbs? Last time it was 98. But I had subtracted two pounds due to her shoes still being on. Isabella was barefoot now. So…so, okay, does this really mean that she _gained_ a pound? Or _lost_ a pound?

_Fucking hell._

I sighed in frustration and opened the leather book, intent on just recording the answer and waiting until next week to see any kind of developing pattern. After I quickly jotted down the number 97, I looked back over to Isabella.

She was staring at me.

"What?"

"I asked you a question," she informed me.

"Sorry, angel. I was distracted. What's up?"

"Blow pop, Ring pop, or Tootsie pop?" she asked, holding up one of each, all different flavors.

I shrugged. "Step down off the scale," I told her.

She did, so I bent down to pick it up.

When I was standing in front of her again, I answered her question. "Well, baby…you had a ring pop earlier, so it's really a question of whether you want gum or chocolate when you're done with your lolly," I told her.

"Chocolate."

"Then a tootsie pop."

She nodded and unwrapped the blue paper from her candy quickly, then stuck it in her mouth, where it would set up camp for the next hour, or so.

I kissed her forehead, glad to find that her fever was staying away. "Go back upstairs angel, your movie is still on. I'll be up in a minute," I told her.

She didn't answer, just silently nodded while twirling that lollipop around in her mouth. I watched her disappear up the stairs before I brought her empty plate in from the dining room and began cleaning up the kitchen. I worked at my natural speed, so I had the dishes washed and put away in less than a minute. After I wiped down the counters, I switched off the lights, then went back upstairs.

Isabella was laying on her belly in the same sideways position on the bed again, head on a pillow, eyes glued to the screen, and a tootsie pop in her mouth. I immediately layed down next to her and stuck my nose in her hair, then began softly trailing my cool fingers along her back. When I got to her lower back, I would rub soothing circles into the tense muscles I found there, knowing that they were caused by her cramps. I wrapped my arm around her and pulled her small body closer to mine, snuggling with her and nuzzling my nose in her soft neck and silky hair.

_Mmm…smells so good._

I relished in the burn of my throat while we watched the Adam Sandler movie. It was pretty funny, but all too soon, there was a scene of two men casually kissing each other. I knew of the scene, having seen this movie before, but didn't think anything of it until now. I braced myself, knowing Isabella's inevitable questions would come soon.

"Edward?" she mumbled around her candy.

_Here we go…_

I kissed her hair one more time. "Yes, baby?" I asked softly.

"How come those two faggots are kissing like that?" she asked curiously and sighed as my hand kept softly massaging her back.

I stopped rubbing her back then, and patted her bottom in warning. "How come those two…_what_?" I asked.

She shrugged. "Well…Edward, I dunno another word for 'em," she admitted.

I nodded and went back to rubbing small circles into her lower back. "Okay baby…from now on, just use the words, 'gay people' or 'homosexuals'," I told her.

"Kay."

"Okay," I said, then kissed her hair again.

After a minute she spoke up. "Edward?"

"Yes, sweetie?"

"How come those two _homosexuals_ were kissing like that?" she asked in the same curious manner.

I chuckled and shrugged. "I really don't know baby. Maybe they love each other," I guessed.

I watched as she scrunched up her button nose in the most adorable way. "Ucky," she whispered.

Ten minutes later, I was still snuggling with my little girl. She was so soft and warm…smelled so fucking intoxicatingly delicious too.

I kept up my gentle, trailing fingers along her back and soon she began to moan sleepily and mumble around her lollipop.

I slowly rolled her over onto her back beside me, and looked at her face. Her chocolate eyes had a slightly glazed over look to them. I knew the pill was beginning to take affect.

"How do you feel, angel?" I asked her softly.

She popped the candy out of her mouth and replied, "High."

I knew that, but didn't expect that answer from her.

I furrowed my brow. "How do you know what high feels like, sweetheart?"

"Daddy showed me," she admitted in a soft, sleepy voice.

I sighed.

_Well, of course he fucking did._

_

* * *

_

A/N:

Well, how do you guys think Edward handled Isabella's first period?

Among other things, as well...

Like her curiosity on Edward's fantasy, the 'ownership' issue, and her threat of sodomy towards Jacob...just to name a few.

Leave me your feedback in a fuckawesome REVIEW!

xoxo


	34. Still Testing The Waters

EPOV

"But why?"

"Because I said so, angel."

"How come?"

"Because that's your new rule."

"Why?"

"For the third time, Isabella…bath time is private time," I told her with finality.

"But why thoough?"

_For fucks sake._

I sighed. "How about you just do as your told and take your bath without all the questions, baby girl," I suggested before gently grasping her shoulders and turning her body away from mine, towards the bathroom.

We were standing at the entrance to the bathroom, and I had just informed her of the bath time rule I had decided upon. She was _not_ happy. She had come up with four reasons, so far, of why I absolutely had to accompany her while she took a bath.

She needs to me wash her hair.

What if she drowns?

What if the hair soapies get in her eyes?

And last, but not least…her Ariel dolly wants to play with me.

Yes. This was going to be a problem.

I had prepared her bath as soon as she had woken up from a forty-minute nap, induced by that percocet pill I'd given her for the pain of menstrual cramps in her abdomen and lower back. I made sure everything was in order…warm water, bubbles, soap crayons, Ariel water doll, tearless shampoo, oil of olay body wash and a soft washcloth.

She stared at the ready tub, then turned around to look back up at me. "But, will you help me draw on the wall with my soapie crayons?" she asked hopefully.

Instead of answering that question, I just turned her back around in the same manner and softly patted her bottom, urging her to walk into the bathroom by herself. "Pretty girl, if you don't start listening to your new rule, you're going to be in trouble," I warned in a soft voice next to her ear.

"But I don't want a new rule, Edward," she informed me in a light tone.

"I know."

"Want you to come play with me…" she pleaded.

"We can play when you're all done," I offered.

"But Edwaaard," she whined and she might have stomped her foot a bit.

I stepped away from her then, so that I wouldn't give into my sudden urge to smack her.

She wasn't listening, and it was aggravating me.

She was starting to whine, and it was annoying me.

She was still testing me on this complicated sexual owner issue, and it was worrying me.

She was tempting me with washing her beautiful, silky long locks and it was pissing me off that I wanted to say 'fuck it' and just give in.

I sighed deeply, now a few feet away from her body.

I would not give in to her.

_I can't._

I won't.

I kept walking backwards. "Isabella, take a bath. I'll be in our room."

"But what if-" she started, but I interrupted her.

"But what if you don't start doing as your told, and you end up getting a spanking before your bath, and then you have to stand in a time out when your bath is over?" I asked in a very Isabella-like fashion, from my position on the bed now.

"That would suck," she answered with a slight nod.

"Yes. So you make the choice, angel. You're a big girl. Are you going to listen, or are you going to fight me on this?" I asked, then gave her a few seconds to think about it.

Before she could answer me, I added, "Either way, you're taking a bath. By yourself. It's up to you whether you want a spanking beforehand, or not."

She turned back around, and I looked at her expectantly, waiting for her decision.

While she stared at me, I felt Jasper's calm wash over me. I was thankful, because I didn't want to be hard on Isabella right now. As worried, and as frustrated as I am at the moment, I knew that she was dealing with her own emotional turmoil.

I knew this from reading my brother's thoughts. I was _always_ aware of my girl's emotional state. She was confused right now. Jasper was feeling confusion and fear, with a hint of longing coming from her. Confusion on the 'owner' issue, I'm sure. Fear of a spanking, no doubt. And I guess longing because…because, maybe she really _did_ want to play with me.

_Aw. My sweet baby girl._

Well, I would play anything she wanted _after_ she took her bath. Alone. Washed her hair…alone. My fingers actually itched at that thought, letting me know their protests on the matter. My hands and fingers longed to wash her soft hair again. I had grown to enjoy it…a lot. And I really shouldn't have.

I comforted myself with the knowledge that I would get to brush it out after she was through with her bath. And also, if my Bella ever wanted me to join her in the shower, in the future, of course, then I wouldn't hesitate to just fucking hop right in beside her. And yes, I would be very greedy and take advantage of the situation while in there. After ravishing her soft, supple, warm little body, I would wash her long, silky hair...for _as long_ as I wanted to, _however many times_ I wanted to. And she wouldn't deny me, she knows better.

So, you see? All hope is not lost.

I raised my eyebrows at Isabella. "Well?"

She sighed in defeat before muttering, "I'll be a big girl."

I smiled, letting her know that I was proud of her decision.

I got off the bed and walked back over to where she stood by the bathroom door, and kissed her forehead. "Alright angel, I'll be in here, while you're in there," I murmured against her warm skin.

"Kay," she mumbled.

"Okay. And when your done, don't forget to squeeze all the water out of your hair, baby," I reminded her.

"Kay."

I kissed her cheek and turned her back around, once again, so that she was facing the tub. With another soft pat to her bottom, I stepped back and turned away from her, heading back over to the bed.

I sat on the edge and watched as she slowly walked over the threshold, into the bathroom, then turned and quietly shut the door behind her, knowing that a closed door was required now. As soon as I heard the door click shut, I sighed in relief and turned to my new task at hand.

I had to get her pajamas ready, with a new pair of padded panties. The small feminine pad was on top of the dresser, so I walked over to it, intent on picking out some pajamas for tonight. After I grabbed another pair of flannel sleep pants and a black wife beater shirt for myself, I focused on Bella's clothing drawers. After some searching, I chose a simple black and blue pajama shorts set with midnight blue cotton panties to match.

I tossed her small articles of clothing onto the bed, then quickly changed into my own pajamas, even though I still didn't like it.

Wearing certain clothes for a certain time of day? Ridiculous.

Pajamas for vampires? Laughable.

But Alice insists that it's a necessity for vampires with _human_ girlfriends, so whatever. I'll dress in the useless things. At least they are comfortable.

When I was fully clothed again, I sat down on the bed and snatched up both the feminine pad, and the little blue panties.

I still can't believe I'm doing this…putting a pad on my girlfriend's underwear for her. It's definitely not something I ever thought I'd be doing in my long, immortal life. But, I can't allow myself think about it like that. Because I'm not doing this for my Bella…this is for her alternate, Isabella. Because my Bella has alternates now…because she has been traumatized, and abused. And I didn't protect her-

_Woah…change the thought process, Cullen._

Right.

Because that's really all I need to make this goddamn day of fuckery complete, with a shiny gold fucking star; become mind-numbingly depressed while my five year old takes a bath just a few feet away.

And that's another thing. I have a little five year old now. Who looks like my Bella, but sure as hell doesn't sound, or act like my Bella.

During this past week, when I have allowed myself a moment to just breath and take a step back, I see myself playing all these different roles. The most prominent ones being, a boyfriend and a parent. The most recent and newly established one, would be a lover. Sometimes, I have even confused myself as to what role I am supposed to play at a certain time. This whole situation just blows my fucking mind.

Anyway, so…my Bella hasn't been around, and if she were here right now, then I wouldn't have to worry about doing this…period pad thing, or even picking out her clothes, for that matter. She doesn't need me to take care of everything for her. Only Isabella does. Isabella is a five year old…my little girl. She _depends_ on me. She _needs_ me.

And I love it.

I smiled as I unfolded the blue panties and placed them down on the mattress by my leg. I ripped open the plastic package, and began removing the adhesive strips, like I had done before when I was with Isabella in the bathroom. After firmly attaching the thin pad to the inside of my girl's panties, I folded over those weird little flap things again, and then I was done.

_Wow, you really shouldn't be that proud that you can stick a pad to a pair of panties._

But I am.

It's just more proof that I can take care of my Bella…whether she's herself, or not.

_I miss my Bella…_

My breath exhaled sharply as a feeling of absolute longing and sadness suddenly consumed me. I missed Bella. _My_ Bella. God, how I miss her. I want to talk to her and hold her…taste her. I want to kiss her. Mark her slim and succulent neck. I want to lay her down on the bed that I had bought for her, and cater to her needs once more…over, and over, and over again. I want to skim my hands along her soft flesh. Kiss all along her defined collarbone and then alternate between kisses, licks and nibbles as my mouth slowly makes it way down her taut little belly. I want to firmly wrap my hands around her tiny waist to keep her body still while my tongue dips and teases that adorable little belly button. I want to fix my gaze on her naked breasts and nuzzle my face in them…play with them. Suckle on those pink little buds until she softly moans my name-

"Edward?"

_Damn it._

That was turning into a really nice little fantasy, too.

"Yeah?"

"C'mere…" she trailed off.

I furrowed my brow in confusion the same time that my jaw had set itself in determination.

"Why?"

"B'cuz," she offered.

Then she whimpered.

I stood from the bed. "Baby, what's wrong?" I asked in concern, making my way over to the closed bathroom door.

"Hit my toe on the tub," she said pitifully, then sniffled.

I nodded, then realized that she couldn't see me. "Aw, it's okay, pretty baby," I cooed softly to her through the wooden barrier.

"Edward, kiss it better…" she pleaded through her sniffles.

At her request, my left hand was on the door before I gave it permission to do so, but thankfully, I stopped my hand before it had a chance to turn the small golden knob.

_What if she is lying? What if it's just another test?_

_What if she is **not** lying? What if she's really hurt?_

_What the hell do I do?_

Damn it. I hate this. I hate that I even have to question her. I mean, fuck…is she really hurt, or not?

My ingrained need to comfort her was quickly winning out over my apprehension of another one of her little tests.

I clenched my jaw and cringed at my internal battle. I really didn't know what I was supposed to do. Do I go with the 'better safe than sorry' theory, and check on her? Or do I stay out here and risk her being on the opposite side of this damn door, needing me, but being deprived of me.

_Fucking relax, Cullen. She hit her toe. What in the hell would you do to make it better, anyway?_

Kiss it, of course. Kissing it always works.

_Huh…when did you become such a woman?_

I rolled my eyes at my inner ramblings, knowing that they were right, and focused my attention back on Isabella.

"Sweetheart, you'll be fine," I softly assured her.

"Huh-uh, Edward," she insisted.

"Yes…" I countered.

She cried out then. And if I'm not mistaken…it didn't sound like the pain cry I had grown used to hearing from her when she'd been unfortunate enough to get hurt. She sounded frustrated. _Really_ frustrated.

"Edwaaard, kiss it better. It's hurts," she told me through her indignant cries.

My chest filled with anxiety as my senses were assaulted with the sounds of her distress. My nostrils flared at the subtle salt in her tears.

I would have gone into the bathroom then, if my instincts hadn't just picked up on her lie in that same exact moment. Well…my instincts, and Jasper's talent.

According to him, she was being deceitful in her reasoning for wanting me in there with her. As I listened a little while longer, I quickly noticed her slight anger and frustration in the sounds of her cries, but the slight wail of her usual pain cry was absent.

She was throwing a fit. Having a temper tantrum.

Jasper didn't pick up any pain from her, either.

My eyes immediately zoned into a hard glare, but I kept quiet through my anger and patiently waited for Jasper to tame it. I leaned my forehead onto the wooden door, and listened to her cry and ask me why I wasn't coming in to 'help her'. With every fake, helpless plea, and every lie, my anger grew…making it harder for Jasper to calm me.

I closed my eyes and tried my best to ground myself and my emotions. I had reached the point of being furious twice now…Jasper just barely being able to bring me back from the brink. She continued to cry and when I noticed the low rumble deep in my chest, I backed away from the door.

Isabella was in danger right now. From me.

Jasper came into the room then, and put his hand on my arm. Skin to skin contact seemed to help immensely, and eventually did the trick.

After two minutes, my voice was no longer rough with anger and my body was relaxed once more. I sighed in relief and hugged Jasper. We didn't usually hug, but damn it, I was fucking grateful. He had just prevented me from hurting my little girl.

God, and I would have hurt her. My stress and anger proved to be so deep right now, that I would have acted irrationally, out of anger, and without a second thought.

Much like a had done with Marie.

I would have hurt her, for lying to me…trying to make me believe that she was hurt, then throwing a fit when I didn't fall for it, preventing her from getting her way.

_Well, Isabella is not stealing, so just calm the fuck down. She's just throwing a fit. And you'd better get used to it Cullen, because that's what five year olds do._

Right.

This was Isabella's first tantrum.

I could handle it. I could do this.

_Just stay firm._

If I had a dime for every fucking time I had to remind myself to 'stay firm', I'd be-

"Edward!" she yelled, interrupting my reverie.

I groaned then. In frustration and in resignation. I was going to have to bust her little ass if she didn't stop all that bullshit crying. I'd call her bluff and give her something to cry about.

_Christ. How cliche is that? "Give her something to cry about", give me a fucking break._

I sighed.

She was still continuing on with her charade at the moment, crying and sniffling. Calling my name. But I began ignoring it with ease, becoming too busy concentrating with keeping myself calm, now that Jasper had left the room.

I would deal with her in a moment.

Her 'bath time testing' ends tonight.

"Edward-" she sniffled.

"Quiet!" I said loudly from my side of the door.

She didn't completely stop her crying, but she did quiet down.

I sighed and kept a reign on my anger as I made the decision to confront her on the lie, knowing that she would fess up to it easily, like she had done in the past with other lies.

"Isabella."

I made sure to keep my voice hard and firm, so that she would know I meant business. She couldn't see me right now, so my 'stern face' that I had perfected was fucking useless at the moment.

"Yeah?" her voice cracked.

"Are you lying to me?"

"Yeah," she admitted.

"Why?"

"B'cuz I _want_ you to c'min here with me…" she said with a whine.

"Oh, Isabella…I'm going to come in there, but you're not going to like it," I warned her in an icy tone.

The only response I got were the sounds of her crying starting back up. And I noticed that it was genuine this time…they were cries of fear. It sounds the same every single time she thinks that she's in any kind of trouble. I quickly picked up her sweet tang of adrenaline over the faint smell of dead blood.

What I didn't understand though, was _why_ did she choose to do this in the first place? I had warned her before she had gotten in the tub. Granted, her 'private bath time' rule may be brand new, but she knows her rule about lying. And whining.

Whatever. It doesn't matter. What matters is making sure that this _never_ happens again. That her 'bath time testing' days are over. Because I can't fucking handle them anymore.

I opened the door then, and quickly shut it behind me, locking the knob when I did. I strode over to her quickly, barely even noticing her flushed, tearstained face, or the usual water mess that she made on the floor.

"Stand up, Isabella," I demanded through gritted teeth.

My jaw was clenched so tight right now, that it was actually beginning to become uncomfortable. I was biting back a growl though, so I kept them tight as I stared down expectantly at my naughty little girl.

"Nooo…" she whined, then wiped at her eye with a small fist.

Before she could finish her protest, I reached down and gripped her arm tightly, quickly hauling her up to a standing position.

I was not fucking around tonight.

I smacked her bare ass with my firm hand. Hard.

"Ow!" she screamed.

"Don't tell me no, Isabella."

"Edward, owwie…stop," she cried, stating her usual plea and turned her watery gaze to look up at me.

I kept my grip firm around her thin bicep, making sure she stayed standing before me. I focused intently on her face and nowhere else.

"Uh-uh, we're just getting started," I informed her lowly, then swatted her ass again.

Her cries grew louder in the echoing bathroom, but I spoke over them.

I glared at her. "Quiet, Isabella. Stop. The fucking. Whining," I demanded, then smacked her ass again.

"Nobody feels sorry for you," I informed her as she kept crying and cringing away from my loud voice.

She was trying to pull her arm out of my grasp and it was pissing me off.

_Why would my girls **ever** think that they could run away from me? First Marie, and now my baby, Isabella. Guess I'll just have to teach her too._

I yanked her arm back over to me, so that she stood even closer to my hard body, and smacked her ass again. Just to prove to her that she could never get away from me.

No matter how hard she tried.

When she still hadn't lowered the volume of all that wretched crying, I decided to inform her of a little piece of information that she may find useful.

"Isabella, the few swats you are getting right now will seem like a vacation ride at fucking Disney World, compared to the spanking that is in store for you, if you _ever_ lie to me like that again," I warned her with another swat to her bare ass.

A sob tore through her throat at my promise, and her sniffles continued, as she focused away from me and stared at the tiled wall in front of her.

"Look at me," I demanded and shook her arm a bit.

She quickly turned her head to the left, towards me, then looked up and into my eyes.

I noticed that the hiccupping sobs coming from her small body were becoming heavier and thicker.

_Don't take this overboard, Cullen..._

Ignoring my inner 'voice of reason', I suddenly remembered that advice from the Nanny 911 show the other night, so I asked with a cold and penetrating stare, "_Why_ are you in trouble?"

While I waited for her answer, I kept that vital eye contact and willed the salty tears that were now a constant stream down her rosy cheeks to not bother me and break my already wavering resolve.

"B-b'cuz you're m-mad b'cuz I l-lied," she hiccupped and sobbed.

I cocked my head to the side in question. "And you're not going to _lie_ to me anymore, are you?" I hedged in a low voice, trying to control the imminent growl.

She shook her head immediately. "Nooo…" she answered in a cry.

I gritted my teeth again. "Good. And Isabella…for the _last goddamn time_, bath time is private time," I reminded her in a hard voice and brought my hard hand down to her bare flesh once more.

"Oww!" she screamed, but I was able to speak over it.

"So for the love of _God_, Isabella, stop testing me!" I yelled at her and smacked her again, but twice this time, and in quick succession.

"Okay! Ok-kay," she stuttered out through another one of those damn sobs.

I let her arm go then, and glanced down behind her, discreetly trying to get a little glimpse of her now tender bottom. After a quick and succesful peek, I was reassured that she was only blushed a faint pink color, and once again, I was satisfied that while my anger was very present, I had not let it control me.

I looked back into her eyes. They were staring right at me…all watery and pleading and fearful and sad.

I frowned. "Isabella, sit down," I said in a quieter voice.

She did, successfully immersing her beautifully exposed and naked body back into the warm water under the thick, white bubbles. She still continued to cry.

I walked over to the counter and ripped off some toilet paper from it's roll, then took it back to Isabella.

"Blow your nose," I suggested, but even I could hear the slight commanding tone that still saturated my voice.

She did and while I was waiting for the soiled tissue to be handed back to me, I thought back and tried to remember how many swats I had actually given her. I knew it wasn't her assigned number of five.

_Hmmm…_

After I counted over in my head, twice, I knew my answer. I had just spanked her eight times. Not much, but definitely more than I had originally intended.

I was angry at Isabella too, just like I had been with Marie in the car, earlier today.

_But Jasper was fucking here this time, so what the hell?_

As I assessed my constant reign in my control and Jasper's slight continuous calming influence, I came to the conclusion that he, in fact, _had been_ helping me. But I felt the same anger with Isabella that I had felt with Marie. And just like with Marie's punishment…I don't feel guilty afterward.

So…so, okay, wait - does that mean that I'm getting better at all of this parenting crap, or that I'm just becoming a heartless bastard?

I sighed, knowing that I didn't know the answer to that damn question.

_Fuck my life._

She handed me back the tissue, and continued to try and swallow back sobs and regulate her breathing. I threw the wadded up tissue in the toilet and closed the lid, then sat on it.

I stared at Isabella critically, and she stared back at me curiously.

I knew what I had to do now, in order to keep up this whole 'I-am-your-owner-but-not-really' charade.

After all, I'm not stupid. I'm actually very well educated and experienced. I've both heard, and read about these types of relationship dynamics. I know of the whole master/slave thing. It's definitely not _my_ cup o' tea, but I know enough.

I know that she expects punishment and aftercare, routines and instructions.

Among other things.

But, damn it, those are the _only_ four things that I can agree to!

All of that other wierd crap, along with all of the odd and depraved sexual things that are involved, are completely off the fucking table.

But, as for this instruction and aftercare thing...I can do that.

_Piece of fucking cake. Chocolate cake. With creamy chocolate icing on top._

So, when she was completely quiet, I spoke.

"You need to finish up in the tub. Wash your hair. When you are done, go to the bedroom. Your jammies are laying on the bed, waiting for you to put them on," I instructed.

She nodded.

"From now on, Isabella, if I have to come in here while you are naked, and in the tub, there _will_ be a repeat of this. Your new rule is very important and it will stay in place," I informed her.

"Do you understand me, young lady?" I asked after twelve seconds of eerie silence.

She nodded again.

"What rule am I talking about?" I tested her.

"Bath time is private time," she responded timidly.

"That's right," I agreed.

She nodded.

"Isabella, rules are not there to 'be mean', or to take away your fun. Each and every single rule that I give you has a purpose and it is your job to follow them. When you don't do your job, then it is my job to correct your behavior. I will not hesitate with my job anymore, young lady. I've been holding back a lot, but I won't anymore," I informed her.

She nodded.

"I will not be washing your hair anymore. I will not play in the bubbles mountains with you. I will not play with your Ariel dolly and I will not draw with your soap crayons on the wall," I told her firmly.

Sadness filled her eyes then, and she let out a whimper that suddenly filled my chest with unexpected anxiety. Out of all her cries in the past ten minutes, that one little whimper had found my weakness.

_Damn it._

"But I want you to play with me…" she told me in a pitifully small voice, then began wiping away fresh, salty tears.

I cringed at her assumption that I wouldn't want to play with her anymore.

I sighed and kept a firm grip on my resolve. "Isabella, look at me."

When I had that vital eye contact once more, I continued. "I want to play with you. I will still play with you. Just not in the bathroom. Or while you are naked. _Never_ while you are naked," I clarified for her.

She sniffled and nodded.

I stood then, and reminded Isabella to wash her hair before I turned and left the room. I softly clicked the door shut behind me, and closed my eyes before leaning back against the wall to my side. I was able to stay calm and relaxed as I listened to the sounds of Isabella finishing her bath.

I sighed and ran my hands roughly through my hair in slight frustration.

I can't get over it and it just boggles my fucking mind, that I don't feel guilty when I have to punish my girls now. I remember clearly how it had been so goddamn hard in the beginning. My apprehension and guilt on the matter, were so heavy, that it had actually prevented me from acting on their bad behavior a few times.

_What is the difference between then, and now? What has changed?_

Whatever the reason is, I don't want to do this anymore. I need a break. I deserve a fucking break. I don't want to try and be a parent anymore. It's getting too damn stressful…too hard.

I fisted my messy hair in both my hands and pulled at it to the point of pain, knowing that I could never allow myself to think like that. My girls need me…all three of them do. I could never abandon them.

As I stood there, leaning against the wall beside the bathroom door, my thoughts and erratic feelings began to torment me; the soundtrack to my sudden sadness had become Isabella's soft humming as she continued to massage the tearless shampoo into her long hair and smooth scalp.

Her voice was so sweet…and I found that even through my melancholy mood, it still soothed me. I stood there, happily drowning in her wet, saturated scent and soft, lilting voice.

The love and devotion that I felt for her and Marie were beginning to scare me.

I love Marie. So much. Her care-free attitude is so refreshing and I found myself smiling, just thinking about her sexy smirks, sassy remarks and heartbreaking smiles. And I can't even begin to explain how much I adore my baby, Isabella. I cannot imagine going a day without her precious smiles and giggling laughter. I can't live without them.

But…

Someday, I know that I will have to.

I miss my Bella.

I need her.

I want her back.

* * *

A/N:

So. Ummmm. Yeah.

Our Edward blew it, and went overboard again, didn't he? Damn those crazy, vampire emotions. Annoying fucking things.

Little Isabella, in all her five year old glory, just couldn't resist pushing her luck in trying to get her way tonight. But, in her defense...she really just wanted to play with him.

**So, what's your vote?**

Poor Isabella? Or, poor Edward? Maybe a bit of both?

LET ME KNOW!

Can any of you guys help Edward and give him some insight as to why he's feeling these things?

And Bella...hmmm, Bella, Bella, Bella. Some of you may be wondering where she is, and you want her to come back. Make an appearance, if you will. Like right now, or hell, maybe even yesterday.

Sorry ~ but that's just not realistic. I know all of this crap from personal experience guys. I didn't just go read a damn textbook about this disorder, ok? I'm trying to keep it real for ya.

Please, keep in mind, that the plotline of the story is still in the beginning stages...especially with Isabella being a newly resurfaced alternate for only a week's worth of time now.

But no worries, doll. Bella _will _come back around, and _soon_. Just...I'm letting you know right now, that it won't happen very often in the beginning. Things will basically continue in this pattern for a while...

Please leave me a REVIEW... you know how I love em :)


	35. Predator And Prey

BPOV

Everything slowly blurred in and out of focus until it all finally cleared and I realized that I had been staring at a white, tiled wall for the past five minutes. I immediately looked around, feeling the instinctual need to take in my surroundings.

It was very quiet in here, with only the sounds of my shallow breathing and the slow _drip, drip, drip_ from the tub's faucet, breaking the eerie silence. I looked down at myself, just now realizing that I was naked in said tub, and surrounded by airy bubbles and soothing warm water. Isabella's Ariel water doll lay by my side, forgotten and floating amongst all the white bubbles.

I blinked rapidly a few times, to further clear my vision, and stopped only when I was satisfied that everything was clear again. I brought my knees up to my chest, suddenly feeling ridiculously exposed for some reason. I noted that the bathroom door was closed, but I still felt uncomfortable. I hadn't taken a bath since I was a small child, and even then, all of those memories are marred with Jim and his abuse. I had the sudden urge to transform this little bubble bath into a shower.

With my mind made up, I sighed and ran my hand through my hair, only to find that it was coated in a soapy substance. Shampoo. Isabella's tearless shampoo. The shampoo that Jim had used on me back in the day.

_Ugh…_

Unless I wanted to smell like a Johnson & Johnson baby for the rest of the night, I was gonna have to rinse that crap out and rewash my hair with my trusty Pantene. I stuck my hand back under the water and felt around blindly for the tub's drain. I found it quickly and pulled the plug, then stood up and watched as the soapy suds slowly trailed down my belly and legs, eager to return to the water pooled at my feet. Pooled…and slightly _bloody_ water.

_Wait, what?_

I gasped for breath, suddenly worried that the girls had hurt my body in some way. After doing a quick, and thorough check, I belatedly realized that _oh_…I was on my fucking period.

_This just keeps getting better and better…_

**My Edward said that we gotta bleed if we wanna have babies…** Isabella told me shyly.

Oh, God.

_Did he now?_

I blushed as Isabella showed me her memory of Edward helping her clean up her bloody legs while she sat half naked on the toilet seat. I saw how Edward searched through the vanity drawers, almost frantically, until he came across the drawer where I had put my feminine supplies. He carefully stuck a pad on a pair of panties and handed it to Isabella, instructing her to 'be a big girl' and put it on. I felt Isabella's confusion when she mistook it for an odd looking diaper.

Awesome. Leave it to Edward, the _vampire_, to explain menstruating to a five year old.

_Well, now that I'm thoroughly embarrassed, Isabella, do you at least feel better about it?_

Isabella didn't respond though, so I turned my attention back to the task at hand, instantly becoming aware of how cold I was quickly becoming. I shivered then, and bent down to turn on the tub's faucet, eager for some more warm water to coat my skin. My skin prickled with goose bumps as I stood, naked and wet, in the cool bathroom. Just as I was getting ready to close the shower curtain and hit the button for the shower spray, there was a knock on the door.

"Isabella, what are you doing?" Edward's stern voice asked me.

I jumped a bit, and furrowed my brow at his tone, then became slightly confused when I found that it caused me to want to answer his question quickly anyway.

"Honey, I'll be out in a minute," I told him in a rush, suddenly hoping that he wasn't too mad...for whatever reason.

"Bella?" his now soft and velvety voice spoke from the other side of the door.

I marveled at the quick change in his tone, but decided to just shrug it off, breathing a sigh of relief that his previous anger wasn't directed at me.

"Yeah, Edward it's me. I'm just gonna take a quick shower…bubble baths just aren't my thing, ya know? And I wanna rinse out this tearless baby crap, I can't stand the _smell_ of it. I want to wash my hair with _my_ shampoo," I informed him.

"Alright love, that's fine," he quickly assured me. "I'll just be in the bedroom. Um…your pajamas for the night are on the bed already. I got them out for Isabella, but you can pick out different ones, if you want…" his voice trailed off from behind the door.

"No, that's fine. Thank you, Edward."

I closed the curtain then, and started on the task of rinsing and rewashing my hair. With the _right_ shampoo. As I was massaging my ridiculously long hair with the _right_ shampoo, the girls' voices started bombarding me out of nowhere. Just…one second my mind space was calm and quiet, and the next, it was all loud and cramped and buzzing. It overwhelmed me for a minute, and I couldn't concentrate on anything they were saying, or what they were trying to tell me. They were trying to speak over each other, and it was very fucking unnerving.

I could already feel the beginnings of a headache. My eyes blurred in and out of focus and the pressure behind my forehead began to intensify. It was almost like they were battling it out…trying to come into awareness at the same time, but that just wasn't possible.

I had to figure out how to fix this. This is _my_ body, goddamn it. They are in _my_ fucking head. They are going to have to learn to speak to me calmly. And to speak - One. At. A. Fucking. Time.

_SHUT UP!_ I mentally screamed, but then cringed when it only caused the pressure in my head to increase.

I stepped out of the shower's spray then, trying to just breath slow and deep through the slight pain. Eventually, their voices quieted significantly and I began to notice when their two very distinct tones slowly began to separate into two very different voices, only overlapping each other every few seconds, as opposed to constantly.

I closed my eyes and tried to focus on them as much as I could, putting all of my efforts into concentrating on what they were trying to tell me.

**Fucking hell, my Bell. You will not believe the fuckery that has gone down today…**

**And my Edward said we could go to Never Never Land to live forever and learn to fly with Peter Pan and Tinkerbell and they will love us and be friends with Pooh bear and Emily dolly b'cuz they will be with us b'cuz we're gonna save 'em from the scary heaven place with all those stupid angels…**

**Edward took me to the store to get a fuckawesome new toy and it's a wicked black Ipod and it's all mine, Bell. You can't have it…**

**I got a new bear and his name is Fuzzy and he lives with me now. Marie said that the Alice girl is my new bestie and I believe her b'cuz she brought Fuzzy bear home and I swinged on the tree swing and I got to cuddle lotts…**

**But you can have the boring blue phone that Edward got for you, and oh yeah! He us got that tricked out new game, Mariokart, for the DS. I played it earlier, Bell. Before my Jake came to see me. It's fucking awesome, as usual, because I picked it out…**

**And the blue medicine is ucky and my Edward got mad and I got put in a time out but I only had to sit in a chair b'cuz there was no purity knife and I had a peanut butter and jelly to eat for lunch and I got apples too and he let me have a yummy ring pop…**

**I tried to get us that new Evanescence cd, but Edward caught me and wouldn't let me swipe it for free. He dragged me out to the car and threw me in the backseat with him, then proceeded to bust my fucking ass for it. Over a goddamn cd. I hope you know that it's all your goddamn fault, Bell. You fucking told him to do that to us. It hurt so bad and I was screaming…begging him to fucking stop, but he just wouldn't, Bell. Lemme tell you, that motherfucker is lucky that I love him so goddamn much…**

I gasped and felt a warm tear escape my tightly clenched eyes as Marie showed me that particular memory.

_**Edward grabbing a fistful of her hair and yanking her head back while she lay across his lap. "Who do you belong to?" he growled in her ear. "You!" she screamed back. "That's fucking right," he remarked smugly, before he yanked his cold hand out of her tangled hair, only to bring it down to her bare ass again.**_

I flinched and my breath rushed out as that scene faded and Isabella piped back in with more tales of her time with Edward.

**And I took some naps today b'cuz I been tired and feelin ucky. And did ya know that my Edward made me mad b'cuz he wouldn't just let me have my thumb after nap time so I hit him b'cuz when he's mad at me, he hits me. But he only pulled my panties down and I got spankins, then he yelled at me and it hurt my feelins but he told me I gotta stand in a corner for another one of those weird time outs, but there was still no purity knife and then I got to play on my big doodle and watch a movie…**

**But we still got the fuckawesome cd, pretty Bell. He still bought it for me, so he can't be that fuckin mad, right? And oh yeah, Edward set up my new wicked Ipod for me, it's in my box right now. My cuppy cake box that's for my stuff. You guys can't play with it…**

**And then there was a man named Jacob Black, my Edward said that's what he's called, and he told me that his friend wants you to satisfy him for the stuff that Daddy use'ta smoke all the time but don't worry b'cuz I took care of it like I always use'ta do. I told him that I was gonna shove Marie's pink rubber cock up in his tight little asshole if he ever said you had to do that again…**

_…what?_

**Yeah, that was pretty fuckin wicked funny. But, ya'll don't know where my lil pink friend is! So haha, and boo for you! But nice try, anyway, ya tiny terror. It's _mine_, and you can't have it. And yeah, I sooo heard what Edward told you about that…**

_Wait, what little pink friend? Oh God, Marie…please tell me that you don't have a dildo stashed somewhere..._

**No can do, princess** she said cheekily.

_Fuck._

**Yah-huh, b'cuz my Edward was mad b'cuz my new rule is no more threatening peoples, but I can hurt them all I want, but I just can't tell 'em that I'm gonna do it. I just gotta do it, and then I won't get a spankin…**

_That doesn't make any sense._

I heard Marie's dark chuckle before she stated **It doesn't fucking have to.**

Isabella's whispered her agreement, then started lightly humming in my head before she showed me her most recent memory. It was of her, here in this bathtub, actually, and she had been throwing a fit…trying to get Edward to come in here and play with her by lying about a hurt toe. He came in alright, but it wasn't to play…

He came into the bathroom and locked the door behind him. He stalked over to her and roughly grabbed her by the arm and pulled her to her feet. He started spanking her wet, naked ass while yelling at her to quit testing him.

Well, now I know why he was pissed off a minute ago.

I noticed that I had just been standing there, out of the warm shower spray, with shampoo still coating my hair, shivering like an idiot. I shook my head, and stepped back under the spray, becoming frustrated with my frazzled sense of time, and how I seemed to lose it often.

As I rinsed and tried to warm back up, I came to terms with all of my new and sudden emotions that had just coursed through me at the girls' memories. It was their memories and their emotions, but I had just experienced all of it in a matter of minutes.

I was definitely upset after hearing about some of today's events. Edward, being the control freak that he is, has obviously made good on his promise to spank me. Or, should I call it, a threat? And it's not me, necessarily, but Marie and Isabella. Either way, he's been doing it. Looks like he's gotten slap-happy quite a few times today, actually.

I know that he has already spanked them a few times, due to him telling me about it and the girls showing me, but I saw a huge difference in these memories. Today, he has been somewhat harsher, as opposed to earlier in the week.

Like…okay, he has obviously graduated to smacking their bare ass, instead of letting them leave their panties on. Now that, I don't really have any problem with, and I somewhat expected it, because I know that he needs to actually see my skin's reaction so that he can make sure he's not causing any type of real damage. Because, I mean…he can't just rely on the girls' verbal reaction. We both know that they are going to cry and fight back, regardless. He needs to be able to judge for himself, whether or not my skin is going to bruise.

So, that's all fine and dandy, but when it comes to some of these other things, I find myself becoming slightly concerned. Things like pulling on a fistful of Marie's hair to yank her head back. Roughly gripping or grabbing at Isabella's arm. Yelling at them and growling in their ear…

Those things may not be that outrageous, or violent, but that's certainly _not_ what I'm used to seeing from Edward. He has never done any of that to me before. He's always treating me as though I am some kind of fragile, breakable…_thing_, that can only handle the barest of touches and light cradles to his body.

_Yeah…but that was before he left me alone in the woods to fend for myself. Things. Have. Changed._

I nodded in agreement with myself. Things most certainly have changed. I mean, if I'm being completely honest with myself…I'm not even me anymore. I'm Bella, Marie, and Isabella, all mixed up into one complicated mess of bullshit. And Edward…well, I guess he's not himself anymore, either. He's Edward: boyfriend, babysitter, owner, parent and lover extraordinaire.

_Wonderful._

Now…while I am concerned about how Edward has chosen to go about punishing me, or - the girls, I mean, at the moment…I am not going to confront him about it, or tell him to stop. I can and will voice my concerns, but really, when it boils down to it…he is in charge. This may be my body, but I'm not exactly in control of it at the moment. So he has to step in and take charge. He has explained it to me many times; I am his mate, I belong to him. He will take care of me. So…if this is what he feels he needs to do, then…I guess he can do it.

I mean, if he has exhausted every other option, and has found that spanking them in this somewhat violent manner is the only thing that gets through to them, then…ugh, he's just gotta do what he's gotta do.

God, it would be so ironic. With Marie and Isabella being as violent as they are, it would make sense that a bit of violence is what finally got the simple message of 'quit being a fucking brat' across.

I don't know…I guess I'm just scared.

I'm scared that he will get fed up with my crazy ass, and leave again. I may be his 'mate', but that obviously doesn't mean a damn thing in the honesty department. He has lied to me and he has left me. And I'm talking straight up, hard core abandonment. You know…the kind where you sit down and actually think up reasons of why you should leave the one you love. You plan it out in your head, knowing full well that your idiotic decision will destroy this person's life, and possibly end up endangering them. You know, because you're a vampire and all. And there are still other vampires out in the world that want to suck your mate dry, but whatever. That obviously doesn't matter and apparently, shouldn't even be taken into consideration while you continue to consider and plan out different dumbass methods for a hasty escape from your girl's simple, boring little life. Nope…none of that stops you from following through with your asinine plan and taking a little 'walk' with your girlfriend, leading her into the woods to rip her fucking heart and soul right out of her numb body just before you vanish into thin air, never to grace her with your arrogant presence again.

And, let's not forget the fact that I just got him back. I have been back in his arms for a week now. But I haven't forgotten, by any means, that I only have him back, because I left the damn country, and I stood up to vampire royalty, and I brought him back home. He didn't come back to me, I went and got him. That fact stabs at the wound that is still fresh and festering on my fragile heart.

God, I couldn't handle it if he did that again. I would fucking kill myself, without hesitance, and I know that Marie and Isabella would gladly assist me in my new goal of ending my mundane and miserable existence for all time.

I'm also scared that if he can't _get_ and _keep_ the girls under control, then after a while, he'll just find the situation hopeless and he won't want to deal with me anymore. He won't want to be bothered with the daunting task of trying to be a boyfriend and a parent simultaneously anymore. And if that's the case, then he can do whatever he thinks he needs to do, to keep them in line and ward off any and all of their erratic, bad behavior…he can do _anything_. He just needs to stay.

And I'm scared that he will someday do that to me. I mean, we haven't really discussed this whole 'spanking business', beyond the idea of him punishing the girls, but I do remember, very clearly, that this whole idea originated from him stating that _I_ needed a firm hand. I sort of just figured he found out that Marie was the culprit to all of my careless and bad behavior, but that's not entirely true. I can be pretty reckless at times. So, what if I do something, and he all of a sudden decides that I need a little taste of his preferred discipline? Oh, God…from what I've seen in my alternate's memories, I don't think I could handle it.

**You're such a pansy** Marie taunted.

_I know._

**Quit cryin about it, Bell. You're the one who said that he could smack us around, so just fucking deal with it.**

_Shut up._

Okay, I know that he loves me, which in turn, means that he loves my alternates, as well. I'm extremely grateful for that and I don't have a problem with him asserting a little authority over the girls. In fact, I have told him to do it…to be an authority figure when he thinks he needs to be, but only because I know that they need it. After all, they live in my head, I know what they are like. And I never had a problem with the concept of him punishing the girls to reinforce that authority.

I mean, it's really the only way that any of this will work. Their behavior can simply be out of control at times, and mentally, they lack the simple common sense and the ability to empathize with others. Edward happens to be the _only_ person that they will not resort to violence with. My love for him is the only thing that is saving him from the wrath of Marie and Isabella. So, that being said, he is the only one that has a chance in hell at keeping them under control so that they don't end up ruining my life. I could very easily be thrown in prison, and maybe even be given the death sentence, for some of the things that I know the girls are capable of.

_Ugh, just…whatever. I don't know._

Frustrated with my thoughts, I shut the shower off, just now noticing that the water had begun to run cold. A violent shiver ran through me and I hurried to grab the white towel hanging off of the rack, just outside of the pale shower curtain. After wrapping the big towel around my body, I wrung out my hair, ridiculously pleased that it smelled normal again, and wrapped it in it's own towel.

As I was rubbing my hair dry, I looked around for my clothes, becoming puzzled when I didn't see them waiting on the counter for me. That's when I suddenly remembered Edward telling me that my pajamas were on the bed.

_Well, damn._

I quickly wadded up some tissue paper and stuck it between my legs, making myself a ghetto little pad until I could get a hold of my panties.

I cracked open the door and hesitantly poked my head out, my gaze immediately falling on Edward where he stood by the bed. He had obviously been pacing. His hair was in a wild disarray, his gold eyes were troubled. His right hand was still in the process of running through the beautiful, bronze mess when he turned around to look at me.

_Fuck, he is beautiful._

**Tell me about it…** Marie said, adding in her usual commentary.

Edward gave me my favorite crooked smile and I could actually feel my cheeks heating up in a blush as I opened the door the rest of the way and leaned my side up against the frame.

I laughed nervously and bit my lip, before mumbling, "Edward, can I have my panties?"

He nodded. "Oh, yeah, sure baby…" he said quickly and snatched up the panties that were laying on the bed.

He came over to me then, blue cotton panties in hand, only stopping when he was just inches away from my face. He stared into my eyes as he slowly reached for the hand that was hanging limply at my side, and gently gripped my wrist, bringing my hand towards the one that held my much needed panties, then swapped my panties from his hand to my own. He slowly curled my fingers over the small article of clothing and closed his large hand around my small, relaxed fist.

"Bella…" he murmured quietly with his lips practically hovering over my own.

"Yeah?" I asked softly.

"I love you," he whispered, practically penetrating my soul with his heated stare.

I swallowed thickly. "I love you, too…"

He looked worried for some reason. But I couldn't, for the life of me, determine a possible reason of why he would be worried Maybe he somehow knows now that I know everything that had happened today. Maybe he's probably just worried about my reaction to it all.

_Well, I don't know my reaction yet, so…_

But, maybe that's not what he's worried about at all.

Maybe he's been sensing my crazy emotions through the grapevine of Jasper's talent. Like, Jasper senses my mood, and Edward reads it from his mind, or some shit.

Whatever. There's no telling. These vampires are fucking complicated.

Before I could think anymore on it, his voice broke around my name.

"Bella…"

I gazed up at my tall, sexy vampire in question, but then suddenly became very concerned when I encountered the pained look on his face.

"What's wrong, Edward?"

He didn't answer, just repeated, "I love you," in a reverent whisper.

"I love you, too," I assured him.

"Don't…don't make me go that long without you again," he pleaded softly and almost reluctantly.

It was like he didn't want to ask this of me, but for some reason, he just had too.

I hesitated, but eventually shook my head, knowing that I was unable to make such a promise to him.

I saw his jaw clench at my response just before I reached my hand out, and pressed my palm to the back of his neck, effectively bringing his pouting mouth down to mine.

I kissed him softly, trying to take the sting out of my unmade promise.

He kissed me sweetly, trying to convey his pent up feelings of longing for me.

I gently tugged on the fine hairs at the nape of his neck, then switched to softly caressing the back of his neck while I kissed and lightly sucked on his honey-sweet lips. He just tasted so damn good…like a hard and sweet and suckable candy. I could lick and suck on those pouty red lips all day long, if only he would let me. After a minute, I pulled my face away, but only just barely, and only long enough so that I could speak.

My eyes glanced up and when my boring brown eyes locked onto his warm golden orbs, I softly murmured, "Edward, I'm here now…it's only been a day, honey. I woke up with you this morning, and I'll go to sleep with you tonight. It's okay, I'm here now…" I repeated my assurance to him, then pressed my warm lips back to his tasty, cold ones.

His instant, relieved sigh filled my mouth and I happily swallowed it down, letting his venom tainted breath cloud my mind and relax my body, while I continued kissing and caressing the beautiful vampire before me.

After another minute, he was the one to pull away this time. I reluctantly complied and let him go, facing the harsh reality that the awesome kiss was now over.

I sighed and looked up into his eyes, going almost rigid when I immediately took in the sudden and huge change in his body's demeanor. A slight scowl marred his face and his eyes were now a coal black color.

"Bella…" his voice was rough now, no longer the calm softness of velvet and seduction.

"Edward?" I asked hesitantly.

I saw his jaw clench before he ground out my name in an even tone. "Bella."

_Uhmm…_

I took in a shaky breath and exhaled, "Yeah?"

"You need to put some goddamn clothes on, before I give in to my overwhelming need to take you up against this wall and fuck you within an inch of your life," he warned me huskily.

I felt my stomach muscles tighten at his words and my cheeks quickly warm up in a blush.

_Ugh, damn. Mmm, what if I **want** you to throw my up against this wall and fuck me within an inch of my life…_

**Sounds good to me** Marie added.

His dark eyes wasted no time in quickly hardening themselves, and narrowing dangerously at me just before they flashed down to look at the covered juncture in between my thighs. I knew then, that his weird and extra freaky vampire senses had picked up on my slight arousal at his words. His penetrating black stare came back to my face a second later, focusing intently on it.

Silence enveloped our still forms as he studied the now pink color of my cheeks for what seemed like forever, before I finally saw a hint of movement in his heavily transfixed eyes.

I watched, in a trance, as his white lids slowly covered the pitch black irises of his eyes. When he tilted his face down and leaned further into me, I heard him inhale deeply. I turned my face slightly to the side and saw a look of sweet serenity take over his beautiful face, quickly and effectively wiping away the previous scowl.

I started to relax at the sight of it, but then he let out his breath in a dark and menacing chuckle, effectively betraying his now calm features.

He opened his cold, black eyes and gazed into my wary brown ones. "Bella…" he said in a deep purr, causing my clit to tingle. Just a little bit.

"Y-yeah?" I managed to squeak out.

He leaned into me again, nuzzling my neck. After a few seconds, he spoke. "You _like_ that, don't you? Such a dirty little girl…" he whispered in my ear, then chuckled again in dark amusement, causing his cool breath to send a shiver down my spine.

He inhaled once more, then breathed out slowly, against my bare skin. "My Bella. Sweet, little Bella…" he cooed softly in my ear.

"Y-yeah? I squeaked out. Again.

_Jesus, why can't I speak coherently right now?_

He kissed my neck before speaking into my ear again. "I want to mark you. Because you are _mine_," he informed me, punctuating his statement with a possessive growl.

_Oh god, yes. Fucking mark me. Now._

At his declaration, I could feel my excitement grow and my arousal deepen, just from anticipating what was to come. I fucking loved this 'marking' business. It felt damn good, and I loved the feeling of security that always came with it. He was claiming me…marking me for all to see. Surely, he wouldn't do that unless he really wanted to keep me.

_Right?_

He pulled his face back then, gazing into my eyes for another moment before finally speaking. "Mmm, I sense your sweet desire, my Bella. I can smell it _all over you_…" he remarked with a smirk, marveling in slight amusement at the changes in my scent that my aroused state had caused.

I blushed at his statement, and noticed how it caused his suddenly transfixed eyes to glisten with venom. He quickly blinked and dipped his face back to my neck, then kissed a trail up to my ear, eventually taking my tiny earlobe in between his lips and sucking softly on it.

"You are so fucking _intoxicating_, love," he told my ear in a seductively rough voice.

I gasped for a breath. "Oh, god…"

He let my lobe go and closed his mouth then. He pulled back and looked at my face, regarding it somewhat curiously. I bit my lip, suddenly nervous being under his odd scrutiny again. After a moment, he laughed lightly, exhaling the small chuckle through his nose.

All of a sudden, he wrapped one arm tightly around me and brought my towel-clad body flush against his chest.

I smiled then, thinking that he was going to start kissing my neck and softly suck on the skin there, so that he could put his mark on me. But then, just as he had begun to nuzzle that special, sensitive spot, he abruptly stopped, and pulled away instead.

He just…fucking pulled away.

_Ugh…will you make up your fucking mind already!_

**He likes teasing you…** Marie offered.

Slightly disappointed, and believing her words, I looked up at him questioningly. But when I lifted my eyes to his, I saw that he was already looking down at me.

He had a fierce look in his eyes that caused me to suddenly feel so small in my spot against his chest. His eyes also blazed with something else that I couldn't quite identify. My smile fell completely as I gazed back into his penetrating…almost _threatening_ stare.

I furrowed my brow, slightly confused now. "Edward?"

He shook his head and continued staring into my eyes. "Shhh, my love. No more talking," he whispered to me.

My eyes diverted from his when they caught the sudden and constant movement of his throat in my peripheral vision. They slowly and reluctantly trailed down his face, eventually landing on the base of his throat, just above his collar bone. I watched and I knew, almost immediately, that he was swallowing back venom.

Convulsively.

_Uh-oh…_

"Ed-" I started but his sudden and sharp hiss at me abruptly cut me off.

Fear immediately consumed every cell in my body as I gasped in a breath and pressed me lips together, trying like hell to just keep quiet.

I knew that hiss. I remembered it. It was a warning.

My warning to stay still. And to shut the fuck up.

He glared at me, our faces just inches apart. My body began to slightly vibrate a second later from the very sudden but steady growl that had successfully erupted deep within the chest that I was currently being pressed against.

About two minutes later, he was able to calm that constant growl, but his nostrils continued to flare slightly.

He spoke then, and I was slightly surprised that it was in an unexpected soft voice. "I can smell your fear…" he told me in a whisper.

I didn't respond though, just stayed silent.

I watched as his lips began to slightly curl into a cross between a small smile and a small snarl. "Aw…are you scared, pretty girl?" he cooed softly to me with angry black eyes that glistened with venom.

I whimpered and nodded.

He blinked and smirked. Satisfied. "Mmmmm…" he purred.

"Edward, no-" my strained voice rushed out before he cut me off.

"Your adrenaline is so _fucking sweet_, I can almost taste it. I _want_ to taste it," he told me, while subtly tightening his hold around me and slowly drawing his mouth closer to my neck.

I was not turned on anymore.

And Edward needed to hunt.

I pushed against his chest with all the strength I could muster, then spoke in a loud and firm voice…just like he had taught me. "Edward, stop."

He chuckled darkly, his icy lips pressed against my bare skin now. He trailed five kisses along my neck, then playfully shook his head and growled out, "No, I don't wanna…"

"Edward, please stop," I whispered.

My voice had went from a firm determination to a desperate pleading in a split second. I was pathetic and weak…and no match for him.

His grip around my upper back tightened, simultaneously holding me closer to him and giving me a silent 'no'.

Three seconds later, his face flashed away from my neck and he hissed out a load and harsh, "Fuck," clearly beginning to battle against his most primal instincts.

He blinked against the shiny venom coating his eyes in a small effort to regain some control, but his grip on my body remained the same. Soon, the side of his face dipped itself back in and was firmly pressed into the side of mine. We were cheek to cheek.

And it hurt.

I caught his quick and repeated whispered plea of, "Jasper, help. Jasper, help. Jasper, help," before he suddenly turned his head to the side and allowed his cool lips to start skimming along my sore cheek bone.

"Edward-" I whimpered out before he cut me off again.

"So fucking _pink_…you're blushed so beautiful for me…so _warm_," he murmured against my cheek.

I started panting and breathing heavily when I felt his lips begin to press hard and insistent kisses on my neck and shoulder. I was suddenly very confused on whether I should be frightened, or aroused. Honestly, I was a bit of both.

_Was he getting ready to mark me? Or feed from me?_

I was successfully being induced into a very fake, but relaxed state, thoroughly dazzled by the venom scent that was surrounding me at every turn. It soaked into my lungs and clouded my mind. I was so confused. My current fear and arousal only served to heighten and intensify my current state of mind. But…still, I could sense that Marie's survival instincts were trying to override those feelings.

**Bell, get the fuck away from him** Marie's low voice suddenly warned me.

**Is my Edward gonna give us a owwie?** Isabella hedged softly.

"So fucking _sweet_. So fucking _mine_," he murmured against the skin below my ear.

"Edward, stop…" I whispered out, no longer finding the strength to protest.

Edward suddenly reached down and swatted my ass. "No," he growled out, then left his stilled, cold hand on my right ass cheek.

_Hot damn, that stings!_

"_You_ don't tell me what to do," he said in a suddenly stern voice, still keeping his face hovered next to my neck.

I nodded slowly, willing myself not to make anymore sudden movements. This was reality slapping me in the face.

Once again.

_Stupid, stupid, stupid!_

How could I forget?

I can _never_ allow myself to forget the fact that Edward is a predator and that I am his intended prey. But apparently, I'm a dumb ass and happen to forget this little piece of information all the fucking time.

_Aaaand, this is where shit gets complicated between inter-species relationships…_

Memories of our early, budding relationship flooded my mind and I quickly realized the severity of our current situation. I kept still and knew that giving any kind of physical indication that I am going to run, or fight, only makes it worse.

We've been through this before.

He raised his head fractionally and pressed his cool lips to the shell of my ear for a gentle kiss, before softly whispering to me, "You are _my_ Bella. _Mine_."

When my only response was a sniffle, he lightly squeezed the sore spot that he had just spanked, and demanded in a hard voice, "Say. It."

I swallowed back my fear and forced myself to speak. "I'm your's," I confirmed in a slightly shaky voice.

He just nodded and reluctantly took his face away from my neck. I watched helplessly as _my_ Edward tried relentlessly to regain some semblance of control over the predator inside of himself. After a few minutes of the occasional clenched fist at the small of my back, and a few growls sporadically erupting from his chest, his tight grip around my body eventually loosened, but he still did not let me go.

His black eyes bore into mine as he stated, "What I said earlier about you and this wall was a _threat_, not a fucking promise, Bella.I am slowly beginning to lose my goddamn composure," he informed me in a hard voice, stating the obvious.

I nodded in acknowledgment of his current dilemma and saw how his black eyes took on a slightly desperate look then. "But then, you just had to go and react like _that_," he spat out accusingly.

I just shrugged, not being able to excuse or explain away my body's very natural reaction to him and his damned dazzling ways.

He continued on. "You let me smell your delicious desire at the thought of me wrapping your legs around my waist while I plunge myself deep inside of your warm, wet heat over and over and over again…" he trailed off.

My eyes widened a bit and I blushed. Again.

I couldn't fucking help it!

I loved the sound of that, but I also knew damn well that I was becoming aroused all over again.

_Fucking stupid period hormones!_

His eyes flashed in anger at me then. "And you're _doing it_. Again," he stated through gritted teeth, as his chest began rumbling in another low growl.

I just stayed quiet, patiently waiting for him to calm himself down. Again.

A minute later, his growl had stopped and he spoke. "That ridiculous rosy blush and your enticing adrenaline are not fucking helping matters any, _Bella_," he admonished me.

I looked down and away from his accusing, cold stare.

_I didn't do anything wrong, damn it._

His used a cold finger to lift my chin up, forcing my gaze to be locked back onto his.

"Why are you doing this to me?" he asked in a perplexed whisper.

"Sorry," I mumbled in apology, even though I wasn't exactly sure what I had to apologize for. He was being unreasonable, like he always is when he's thirsty.

It would seem that this time, he was blaming me for his urges, even though I did nothing to purposefully provoke them. I can't help my body's natural reaction to his fuckhott dirty words, and his light, trailing kisses along my bare skin.

But then again, I guess he can't help his body's natural reaction to the simple scent of my blood. How it sings to him…keeping him addicted to me.

Still…he should have known that he wouldn't be able to handle my aroused state right now, for whatever reason. Thirst, stress, whatever. So _he_ should have never provoked _me_. Because that's how it happened. _Not_ the other way around.

I stood there silently and placated myself, knowing that things would be better after he goes hunting and feeds on a poor, defenseless deer, or something. He will come back and apologize for his behavior. I will accept it and forgive him. A week later, if he's not careful, then this process will repeat itself.

It's a vicious cycle.

"Get dressed," he demanded in a harsh tone.

I nodded and tried to step away from him, but he still had a pretty good grip on me.

I sighed. "Edward, let me go…" I whispered.

At my request, his grip only tightened around me. I stiffened as he buried his nose in my long, wet hair and began taking deep, gasping breaths. I stood completely still, waiting for the onslaught of round two, when his rough voice spoke against my scalp.

"Bella, I need to hunt. I need to go. I need to leave. Now," he told me in a rushed voice between slight and subtle, rumbly growls.

"Go," I said simply.

He groaned then, and it caused him to sound like he was in pain. The noise, in turn, caused me to immediately submit to him, making my towel covered body go completely lax against his hard one. He began continually pulsating his one-armed grip around me from tight to loose. Like a heart beat. Like he was matching it with my heart beat.

His breathing, which had gone from the occasional slight gasp to just being non-existent for a while, had thankfully calmed into the slow and shallow breaths I was used to hearing from him.

And I knew that my Edward was beginning to resurface again when he spoke, a few minutes later.

"But I don't _want_ to…" he admitted in a much softer voice, wrapping his other arm around me as well, effectively pulling me in for a hug, and gently cradling me, no longer _pressing_ me, to his cool and comforting chest.

I nodded and reached a hand up to lightly run my fingers through his hair, offering what comfort I could to him. The dangerous behavior he displayed a minute ago, which had just barely been tamed by Jasper, was screaming out of his need to hunt, and I wasn't about to risk my life any further by trying to convince him to stay, like he obviously wanted me to.

"Bella, I miss you," he admitted in a whisper to my ear, and I noticed how his breath slightly hitched at that declaration.

I turned my face to the side and placed a soft kiss against his cool, smooth cheek. "I love you Edward. I'll be here when you get back. But you need to go hunt now, honey," I insisted, trying my best to hold back the tears that were starting to burn in my eyes.

He finally let me go then, stepping back and out of our embrace. He looked into my eyes beseechingly, silently asking me for my understanding and forgiveness at his recent behavior.

I gave him a slight nod, knowing that I could never begrudge him of his true nature. I heard his rushed sigh of relief before he hurriedly stepped back towards me, and quickly placed a cool kiss to my forehead.

"I'll be back," was his whispered promise, before he literally vanished out of thin air…obviously in a hurry to get away from me.

**Okay…what the ****fuck** just happened? Marie's voice demanded.

**Where's my Edward goin?** Isabella asked anxiously.

Alice appeared out of nowhere then, apparently trying to perform her own magical vanishing act. "It'll be okay, Bella," she told me in a soft, reassuring voice, adding in a small smile for good measure.

**But he said I could go ****with** him next time… Isabella mumbled sadly.

I looked in Alice's direction and subtly nodded at her, but I didn't answer any of them. I just numbly walked towards the bed and grabbed the pajamas that Edward had so carefully laid out on the bed for me. With my bed clothes now in my hand, I sighed and turned to walk back towards the bathroom, softly shutting the door behind me as I crossed over the thresh hold.

I was trying so hard not to cry. The rushed, messy emotions that the girls had caused to course through me while I was in the shower, was still upsetting me a great deal. Then there was the constant fear of Edward leaving, or giving up on me because of my now very obvious personality disorder.

Then, there was Edward's current, and sudden erratic behavior. To say that he had just confused the hell out of me and hurt my feelings would be an understatement. I haven't had to deal with that 'predator' side of him in a long time. Since before he left me after my birthday. Actually, since the beginning of our relationship. But believe me…what just happened caused my memory to refresh real quick, and I remember very clearly now all of the times that I would have to hold perfectly still while Edward acclimated himself to me and my deadly scent.

But, I guess it would sort of make sense for us to have to go through a phase like that again. After all…he has been gone for a while, and being back in my presence for only a week now could cause some of those familiar early-stage problems to occur again.

_Right?_

Plus, our relationship is still somewhat rocky…we are still trying to rebuild the trust. Add Edward's predator and two of my uncontrollable alternates to the mix, and we have a near disaster on our hands. I just hope that we will be able to get over this huge bump in the road.

But at the same time, I don't really understand why he had just behaved the way that he did and it's frustrating the crap out of me because it only adds to my current confusion.

I mean…how could he be so incredibly intimate with me last night, but then go all creepy vamp on me a minute ago?

And didn't he just hunt yesterday? Why does he need to hunt again so soon? Lust? Stress? Is it because I'm menstruating? The possibilities are fucking endless…

I found myself wanting him to just hurry back. I know that he will be himself again when he returns to me. I know this from experience, so I have no doubt in that fact. I just can't wait to kiss him again and snuggle up into his chest. He always likes to softly caress his cool fingers through my long hair and down back while slowly rocking me…gently lulling me into a peaceful sleep.

_Great._

He's been gone for all of two minutes and I'm already pining after him like some love sick, obsessed little girl.

_Pathetic._

I sighed and decided to just try and fucking relax until he gets home. I really need to quit over-analyzing and over-thinking everything.

I was planning on drying off the rest of my body, so that I could get dressed, but I was already mostly dry by now, so after a simple, quick rub down, I grabbed the blue panties that Edward had handed to me earlier.

When I looked at them though, I lost my battle at trying not to cry.

I stood there, just staring at the damn things, while tears blurred my vision, eventually spilling over and causing me to break the promise I had made to myself to not cry. I felt the traitor tears stream their way down my cheeks as the lump in my throat grew thicker.

There was a pad already stuck to the inside of the new, blue panties. I sniffled and felt my heart swell with love, the same exact time that I felt my cheeks heat up in embarrassment, from the sight of it.

How weird and completely awkward must all of this be for him? Among many other things, my _vampire_ boyfriend took the time to explain the process of menstruation to my very fucked up, very confused five year old alternate, while simultaneously cleaning up a _blood mess_ that was on her skin. And then he goes and makes sure that she always has a prepared and padded pair of panties to put on, just so that she will be comfortable. I mean…who does that?

_My Edward._

That's who.

* * *

A/N:

You all know the drill ... REVIEW for me, darling :)

And if any of you are wondering why none of the Cullen Coven stepped in to physically intervene, it's because Bella was never in any real danger. Jasper knew it. Alice knew it. So, it's all good...

Actually, you guys should probably know that Edward is at a critical point right now where he is very arrogant and proud at the moment, in the sense that he doesn't want anyone interfering in his dealings with his mate. That's why he can bust Isabella's ass in the bathroom, completely uninterrupted, with five or six other vampires downstairs. The Cullens know their place right now, and that is to just stay **_out _**of the way in certain situations, unless specifically called upon. I mean, think about it...if one of them had tried to interfere a minute ago, then the predator in Edward would have quickly mistaken it for another vampire trying to steal his meal, and he would have become protective and hostile, causing it to end very badly. You know, the usual...Bella gets hurt and some kind of vamped out fight happens. Ridiculous, really.


	36. True Nature

BPOV

I stopped crying after a minute. It was ridiculous, really…I shouldn't be crying over a pair a padded panties, of all things. I sniffled, wiped away the last of my tears with a tissue, and got dressed, all the while marveling at how emotional I was being tonight. I could blame it on the girls' memories, or I could blame it on Edward's actions.

_Both. Definitely both…_

I nodded to myself, then grabbed my toothbrush off of the counter, pausing for a second to stare at myself in the mirror. I took in my appearance with a slight grimace on my face. My eyes were a little puffy and I saw that my nose and cheeks were tinged pink from crying.

I sighed and set the tooth brush back down on the counter, then quickly splashed some cool water on my face to wash away the salty proof of my wayward emotions.

I miss Edward. And right now, I'm wishing that I _had_ asked him to stay, consequences be damned. But, I also can't deny the fact that I'm mad at him right now, too. I am mad and I am hurt.

_How could he be so callous with my alternates, knowing that he was ultimately being callous with me?_

As much as I know they want to be, Marie and Isabella are not individual people. They are me. They are just two different parts of my subconscious that I don't have any control over at the moment. It may seem as though I'm essentially three people right now, but I am not, and at the end of the day…it's _all_ me.

Edward was rough with _me_. He grabbed and pulled on my arm, he yanked my hair, he smacked my bare ass until I screamed and cried and pleaded for him to stop, he growled in my ear, he yelled and hissed at me…he almost bit me. And all of this happened in the course of _one_ day.

I'm gonna have to talk to him about this. The more I think about it, the more it upsets me, and my need for reassurance from him begins to gradually intensify.

_Does he still love me? Why have his actions towards me, at different times of the day, been so harsh?_

I've seen through the girls' memories that he's been tentative and caring throughout the day, but has also had the occasional outburst of anger, in which he immediately resorts to physically punishing them, without exploring other options first. God, it's like he's taking his frustrations out on me.

_Is all of this; my disorder, my alternates, my therapy…has it become too much for him to handle? Has it become too much for his family to handle?_

Oh, God. It has become too much for my vampire family to deal with. They are overwhelmed and they are all plotting and planning different ways to leave me again and they are going to dump me back on my dad and his whore and my life will be over and I'll want to take another dive off of that damn cliff in hopes of killing myself and Edward won't care because then, at least, he'd be rid of the human that has bothered and weighed him down for the past year and a half and holy shit, he's leaving…

**Oh my fucking God!** Marie yelled, exasperated.

**My Edward won't leave, I won't let him…** Isabella whispered to me.

**Will you just shut the hell up, Bell? _He_ is not leaving and _you_ are being a goddamn drama queen** Marie informed me.

I sighed. They were right. I was just getting caught up in my emotions, letting my imagination run away with me…that's all. The Cullens won't leave me.

Not again.

I started biting at my lip then, still a little nervous in my hypothetical thoughts and trying like hell to believe my supernatural family's promise to never leave me behind again. I really needed to invest some trust in their promise, but that was proving to be a very hard thing to do. The wounds that they have caused me with their _complete_ and _total_ abandonment this past year, are still very open and sore…plus, Marie does not seem to want to let any of our defense mechanisms down at the moment. She won't let me put any trust in them. Not yet, anyway. If the Cullens want to have my trust, then they are going to have to go through both of my alternates to get it. Trust is something that I've been unable to give anyone for a while now.

I shook my head, trying to clear it of those particular thoughts. Dwelling on my obvious lack of input in the self-worth and self-preservation department of my mind, always puts me in a bitter mood. Both of these important instincts have somehow been diverted into being under my two alternates' complete control.

For example, I can honestly say that I don't love myself. I view myself as being pathetic and weak, and I really don't understand what Edward sees in me, or why he would even want to be with me. However, Marie and Isabella, my alternates, have always expressed complete and utter devotion, love and loyalty towards me.

Marie is always informing me of her deep feelings of love for me and complimenting me on my so-called 'beauty', while Isabella tends to focus more on the fact that I am very important to her, and she likes to constantly inform me that she loves me more than anything in the world.

I can actually feel their fierce sense of loyalty towards me at times. This feeling of loyalty is often fleeting and rushed, but it is always the same and it is always overwhelming. It only appears just before one of them comes into awareness for the lone and sole purpose of protecting me. It's almost like it is their way of 'telling me' not to worry about the impending threat and to just trust them to take care of me. That's the best way that I know how to explain it.

There is also the fact that, while Isabella's primal possessive instinct is completely focused and directed at Edward, that same primal instinct in Marie is directed at no one, but me. Only me. She is always telling people that I am 'her's', and that she will always take care of me. She is actually having a slight problem in relinquishing that task to Edward right now. They have had arguments over whom it is that I really 'belong' to and who's job it is to actually take care of me. Both of them are very stubborn and will not budge in their position of ownership over me. I don't see it as being a problem right now, but it may become one, if Edward doesn't take a fucking break from the territorial pissing contest long enough to realize what Marie's possessiveness towards me _really_ is. It is actually my hidden self-protective instincts shining out, loud and clear, through my seventeen year old alternate. That's all it is. Simple as that. I need him to just realize that he doesn't always have to fight with Marie over me, because all he is doing, is essentially fighting _me_ over me, and that just doesn't make any damn sense. Anyway, these facts, among other things, serves as proof that I actually have a lot invested in my own self-worth.

And also…Edward is always complaining that I am a very reckless girl, who doesn't seem to care at all about her own safety. Well, he's completely right. I don't give a shit. Marie and Isabella, on the other hand…they have always been very quick to jump to my defense, becoming dangerously hostile towards anyone and anything who might pose any type of threat to me. So, you see? Contrary to what Edward might believe, I have a lot to show for my natural self-preservation instincts.

I just don't have any control over it. Only Marie and Isabella do. And it really chaps my ass and frustrates me to no end, to know that while they can feel this insanely intense 'love' for me, I, however, can feel nothing. I just don't give a damn about myself, and it makes me feel so hollow…empty. It's fucking depressing.

Yes, but at the same time, it is those 'hidden' self-preservation instincts, that always tends to get me into a lot of trouble. Edwards wants so badly for me to just express some concern for my own health and safety. While that may be an innocent and reasonable request, he truly has no idea of what he is asking of me. He doesn't know what it would mean if I were to let myself succumb to those particular instincts.

I subtly shook my head at my own thoughts…if the Cullens only knew.

I am one very fucked up individual.

The girls could actually give my vampire family a run for their money in the whole 'protection' department, I bet. You see, both of my alternates have a very disturbed side to them, in which they are what you would call, 'sadists'. They both have deeply ingrained violent tendencies and will often times lash out at people for seemingly no reason at all.

Especially little Isabella…acting irrationally and without cause, is only one of the behavioral traits she has adopted from Jim.

Both of my dangerous alternates will randomly get into these moods where they will want to hurt someone, because…I don't know, maybe they just felt like it. Maybe that person didn't give them what they wanted. Maybe they just wanted a good laugh. They also have these incredibly sick urges to inflict pain on others. They will often drift inside my head and allow themselves to daydream and fantasize, coming up with dozens of different violent scenarios, in all of which, they play the role of Attacker and their imaginary actions always, in one way or another, mirror some small form of Jim's sick behavior. The various ideas that they continue to conjure up never fail to excite either of them. They have always found immense satisfaction in every single heinous act that they have ever committed, all the while, excusing their abhorrent behavior as being some kind of rightful justification against someone who was trying to hurt me in some way. They will claim that their actions were all apart of their efforts to simply 'protect' me.

But I know better. I know when they are protecting, and when they are…playing.

Marie, for example, enjoys baiting men, and she does it very well and very often…every chance she gets, actually. She will turn on her sexy charm and flirt with many different, unsuspecting guys…making sure to seduce them a little bit, just for good measure. It is all a game to her. A very amusing one. And a huge sexual turn-on, for some reason. Anyway, once things start advancing towards the direction of possible intercourse, Marie quickly switches up her mood and turns the tables, loudly accusing them of being rapists, right before she proceeds to just beat the living hell right out of them. She absolutely loves it and becomes more and more aroused with every punch she throws and every kick she lands to their body. Their pained cries are music to her ears, and she always, _always_ demands that they scream for her. If they refuse, then she will inflict more pain until she gets what she wants from them. She is almost always equipped with a can of mace and a pair of brass knuckles, to help aid her in her quest of taking down a rather large, or strong male.

This quickly became her most favored activity, besides the typical street fighting, after a man had attempted to rape me in the back of an alley. That night, Marie gave me no warning…she just flashed into awareness, and instantly took over, handling everything for me. She was almost robotic in all of the very fast, very instinctual decisions she had to make in order to insure our survival. Watching her memory of it afterwards, was very surreal. It was as if all of the knowledge and skills that I had gained as a preteen from the hands-on self defense classes my father had made me take, just all of a sudden rushed towards the forefront of my mind and those thoughts became the only thing that Marie could focus her attention on. There were very simple defensive moves, that I had learned eight-ten years prior, that she had begun performing with surprising perfection and unknown grace, her movements quick, unwavering and dead-on. In almost no time at all, she had incapacitated the man and quickly gained the upper hand, putting all of her remaining efforts into using the bastard's own weapon against him. She stabbed him eleven times, and watched, completely and utterly fascinated, as the spark of life slowly dimmed from his eyes. He was dead after only five of those brutal stabs, but she just kept on going…having _entirely_ too much fun plunging and twisting that knife into various places on his limp body. It was overkill, really, but she had insisted that 'the motherfucker deserved it' for the act of violence that he was so completely ready to commit against her 'pretty Bell'.

Isabella, on the other hand….she is a bit rusty, having not performed any of her skills in a quite a while, but she _does_ have skills. Many...many, various skills. Used mainly for torture purposes. In the past, people have often underestimated her, due to her sweet, sing-song voice and adorable looks, complete with soft brown curls and rosy pink cheeks. They were making a very grave mistake when they assumed that she was just another pig-tailed little girl on the playground. There have been many schoolyard fights between Isabella and other children. Somewhat normal, right? Well…not when the pretty and petite doe-eyed girl ties a kid down, or breaks their shins so that they can't escape their impending doom of broken noses and cracked ribs, or of getting tissue damage around their bruised neck from where her little hands were gripping too tightly in an effort to strangle them…burn marks that she made on their bare flesh with lit matches, deep cuts that she delivered with a simple boxing knife that Jim had told her to take to school.

All a child would have to do was look at me the wrong way, or be so bold as to actually call me a name in an effort to tease, or make fun…or make a statement that I had 'cooties'. Little things like that sealed their fate. And a part of me actually felt sorry for them. The other part, though, was Isabella, and she felt nothing but blind rage and hatred for other children who appeared to be 'happy' in their home life and have lotts of friends to play with on the playground during recess. Irrational jealousy consumed every single cell in her small body, causing her to continuously lash out at people.

While Marie doesn't like strangers, Isabella doesn't like people. At all. Simple as that. So, to say that I could have just made a few friends of my own, and then maybe Isabella wouldn't be as jealous of other children's happiness, because then we would have somebody to play with too, doesn't make any damn sense. Because she wouldn't _let_ me make other friends. According to her, she was the only friend that I would ever need, and that was final.

It's needless to say that I was accused of being a very violent, very disturbed little girl back in the day. So disturbed, in fact, that I was committed to the state's insane asylum. It was actually Isabella who was the disturbed one, but who am I to talk? Isabella is really me, right? Just like Marie is really me, and I am really the one who gets her nut from torturing men and listening to their screams. It was me performing all of these horrible acts, under the guise and protection of my alternate identities.

That's what scares the shit out of me about having this disorder. Just knowing the kinds of things that Marie and Isabella do and why they do it, makes me not want to 'get well' and recover from this mental illness. I do not want to fuse the good part of my mind with the dark, and depraved part. I don't want to wake up one day and feel the urge to cut somebody, or burn them…make them scream for my pleasure alone. There is a part of me that definitely craves these things, and that part is successfully thriving in Marie and Isabella.

Edward only knows some of what they are actually capable of. He has both seen Marie in action, and heard Isabella threaten. But he has yet to see their truly violent nature. Hopefully, he won't ever have to see it.

I sighed, changing my thought process then, and remembering the variety of the many random memories my alternates had shown me, while I was in the shower rewashing my hair with the right shampoo.

They had both been overly excited and insistent with their loud and rushed voices, trying in vain to speak over one another, and causing me a pressure headache with their inane battle at seeing who would be the first one to inform me of their personal account of today's events. They were arguing and shoving their voices around, neither of them willing to back down, and both of them wanting to be the first to tell me what had happened today after therapy.

Every. Single. Annoying. Little. Detail.

I sympathized with the girls' hurt feelings and their slight confusion with Edward's tempered and weird emotions. But, at the same time, I was mad at them. While they did not deserve the odd and uncharacteristic harshness of some of Edward's reactions, they did, however, deserve his anger. I mean, even _I_ want to smack them around a little bit.

Because, really…Marie trying her hand at stealing again, and then Isabella lying and whining and testing Edward for like, the hundredth fucking time in a week? It's like they were _trying_ to provoke him.

**Fuck you, Bell** Marie retorted.

**I just wanted to play** Isabella insisted indignantly.

_Ugh, whatever._

Frustrated that I couldn't decide which emotion to focus on, I retrieved my sparkly blue toothbrush once more, and started on the task of scrubbing down my pearly whites. And when I was done with that, I did it again.

Methodically brushing my teeth always seemed to have a strange calming effect on me.

Actually, now that I think about it…doing _anything_ methodically seems to have a calming effect on me. I think that it's because it provides an easy distraction for my mind, allowing me to completely focus my attention on something else. Something meaningless and simple and mundane. It also satisfies my uncontrollable and deep-routed need for a constant routine with simple instructions. I've had this nonsensical need ever since I can remember…ever since my early days with Jim.

As I stood there, over the bathroom sink, dressed in the black and blue pajamas that Edward had picked out for me, I stared intently at myself in the large vanity mirror, and wondered why I would associate the comfort of my simple routines with Jim, of _all_ people.

After a minute, I still didn't have an answer to my internal question, so I tore my gaze away from my pale reflection and proceeded to put another blue strip of paste on the bristles of my toothbrush, then began the same task for the third time in a row tonight.

I brushed in long, sideways strokes. I scrubbed in fast, little circles. I massaged the soft bristles over my pink gums. I ran the brush along the ridges in the roof of my mouth and across the flat width of my tongue, both over and under. After rinsing off my toothbrush, I needed to rinse out my mouth, so I cupped my hands under the running faucet and brought the water to my lips. I swirled it around in my mouth, swishing the cool liquid in between my teeth and tongue, then spit it out. With a new mouthful of lukewarm water, I gargled it in the back of my throat, and spit again. After repeating this twice more, I broke out the mouthwash, finishing my teeth cleaning ritual with a thirty second gargle of some good ol' Crest pro-health plus whitening rinse.

Satisfied with the clean, tingly feeling in my mouth, I dried my hands and face, then grabbed my hairbrush off the counter. Slowly fingering the plastic bristles of my brush, I became lost in thought and felt sadness start to creep in when I realized that Edward wasn't here to brush my hair tonight. Apprehension began to join my sadness when I remembered why he wasn't here right now.

Something was definitely going on with him. As much as I didn't want to even think of the possibility of him being overwhelmed with stress at his new situation…at the things that I am putting him through, I know that it is most likely the reason for his recent behavior. Why he had been hot tempered and rough with the girls at different times today. Why he couldn't bare to be in my half-naked presence without being overcome with his more primal instincts to treat me as if I am simply his prey, as opposed to the love of his immortal life.

After a minute I cheered up though, because I knew that he would be back soon. And when he came back, he wouldn't be all vampy anymore, he would be my Edward. And my Edward would insist that, before he lets me lay down to go to sleep, he needs to sit behind me on the king-sized bed, and pull me back to his chest for a snuggle, while he slowly and methodically runs the brush through my long hair for a good ten to fifteen minutes, so that I don't 'get sick' from going to sleep with wet hair. I smiled, knowing that he would be determined to do this, using that lame 'sick' excuse, and he wouldn't give much thought as to whether I actually wanted my hair brushed. He would just do it anyway.

But his insistence in this matter is completely unnecessary, because I would never give any protests, or try to deny him the pleasure of simply brushing my hair. He seems to enjoy it immensely, and I harbor a secret love for the mundane act, as well.

I started brushing out my damp hair then, trying my best to have patience and work gently through the occasional tangle, wishing it was Edward brushing my hair instead, and remembering how each and every gentle stroke, done by his hand, always relaxes me while giving me those tiny, subtle goose bumps that cause me to shiver with pleasure.

I put the brush down on the counter when I was done, and opened the bathroom door, only to find Alice standing there…waiting for me.

"Hi Bella," she said through a smile.

I gave her a weak smile back. "Hey Alice, what's up?" I asked while walking around her and towards the bedroom door.

An odd noise started subtly ringing out from somewhere in the room before I could get far though. I abruptly stopped my steps and started looking around the room, trying to figure out where that noise was coming from.

"That would be Edward," Alice informed me as my eyes drifted over to the dresser, landing on a small black and blue phone.

**It's your tricked out new phone, Bell. Edward got it for you when we went to the store to get my wicked new Ipod** Marie told me.

Alice gracefully skipped over to the bed and plopped down, laying sideways across it while keeping her sharp eyes on me. I went over to…my new phone, apparently, and unplugged it from the charger cord, watching as the screen lit up with every ring. I was able to press the talk button after the fourth windchime sound that the ringer had been set on.

"Hello?"

"Hello, beautiful," Edward's voice came through the tiny receiver, caressing me in it's velvety goodness.

I smiled and breathed out a relieved sigh, "Hey…"

"Are you smiling?" he asked, and I could tell from his voice that he was smiling as well.

I laughed a little at his correct assumption. "Yes," I admitted shyly.

"Aw, love, you have a beautiful smile. I wish I was there to see it," he said wistfully.

"So come home," I suggested softly.

**Edward, I miss you** Isabella's voice chimed in out of nowhere.

"In a little bit, sweetheart," he placated before he asked, "So, do you like your new phone?"

"Um…I actually just saw it when it started ringing. It looks nice, I like this pretty shade of blue. I still have to play around with it, though…" I trailed off.

"Mm-hmmm," he hummed in agreement.

I sighed and bit my lip after a few seconds of silence. "Edward, I miss you," I admitted.

I heard him sigh. After a minute, he spoke softly, "Bella…I'm sorry I had to leave like that. I didn't want to, but it became necessary," he told me. When I didn't say anything in response, he asked, "Do you understand, baby?"

"Yes," I reassured him.

"Good. I just wanted to call and see what you were doing…and I miss you too, love."

I nodded, but then realized he couldn't see me. "Will you be home soon?" I asked hopefully.

"Yes, I should be there within the next hour, or so…"

I smiled, glad that he hadn't gone far and would be home soon. "Okay."

"Did you already brush your hair?" he asked then, curiousity laced in his tone.

I laughed then, I couldn't help it. I _knew_ that question was coming. "Yesss…I just got done, actually," I admitted.

"Bella," he playfully admonished me with a smile in his voice. "You silly girl, that's _my_ job," he insisted with mock indignation.

"Aw, poor baby," I teased.

"I wanna brush it…" he said softly and I could hear the slight pout in his voice.

"I know, honey. You can before I go to bed. I promise," I assured him.

"That's right, I can," he agreed, overly sure of himself all of a sudden.

I rolled my eyes.

"What are you going to do while I'm gone, love?" he inquired.

I shrugged and walked over to the bed. "Ohhhh…I dunno," I offered in a sigh as I flopped down on my stomach, next to Alice.

She absentmindedly started trailing her cold little fingers through my hair as I dangled my feet in the air, slowly kicking them back and forth. I grabbed Edward's pillow and started softly running my fingertips along it's fabric, subtly inhaling his lingering scent that still clung to the cotton.

"You should play that new Mario game that I bought for you..." he trailed off suggestively.

I grinned, and felt excitement start to creep in as I gasped out, "You got me the MarioKart game?" I replied, maybe a little too enthusiastically.

I heard his laugh. "That got my girl to smile, huh?" he asked.

"Yesssss," I giggled.

"Mmm, I'm glad," he said softly.

"It's gonna be so fun," I said brightly.

"You're going to have to show me how to play it when I get home, baby," he told me.

I nodded. "Yeah, okay. I will," I assured him.

I heard Edward's sigh into the phone before he murmured, "Hmm…I love you, Bella."

I bit my lip and mumbled, "Love you, too…thank you for the phone and the game, Edward," I said shyly.

"Aw…you're welcome, love. Anything…_anything_ you want, you can have," he assured me.

"I know," I said quietly.

"What is it, baby?" Edward asked in concern, noticing how I had gone from excited giggles to shy mumblings in a matter of seconds.

"Nothin…"

"Bella," he said my name softly, but even I could hear the hint of warning in his voice. He wanted the truth and didn't like it when I hid things from him.

"It's nothing, Edward. I just miss you," I assured him quickly.

"I miss you too," his voice lightening again, satisfied with my answer.

We were both quiet then, and I began to wonder whether or not I really should voice my concerns to Edward. Not just about his odd behavior, but also why, exactly, I needed him to continue keeping the girls in line for me because of what they are capable of. He's been doing great at getting the job done, but maybe…I don't know, maybe he could like, lighten up a little bit? If things get to be too stressful for him, he could go for a walk, or something. Maybe he could get the family to help out more…if they even _want_ to, that is. Or, maybe he could ask Esme for some parenting advice. I'm sure she's got all kinds of great tips on how to _not_ take your anger out on the kids.

"We need to talk when you get home," I blurted out before I could stop myself, or back down.

He was quiet for a second, obviously not expecting me to say that, before he relented and confirmed in a quiet, but serious voice, "Yes. We do."

I nodded. I knew he would have things that he wanted to discuss with me, but I'm not sure if he knew that I had some things to discuss with him, as well.

"Yeah…" I trailed off.

He sighed. "I'll see you soon, love," he said softly.

"Okay, I love you."

"I love you too, baby."

"Bye Edward."

"Bye, my Bella," I heard him whisper before the click sounded in my ear, officially ending the call.

I flipped my new phone closed and set it down beside me on the bed, then turned to look at Alice.

"Hi," I mumbled, sadly.

Alice rolled her eyes and smiled at me, before hugging herself to my side, shaking me a bit. "Cheer up, Bella!"

I smiled. "Alright, alright," I relented half-heartedly.

"That's the spirit," she said brightly.

She let go of her hug-hold that she had on me then, and layed back down on her side. I looked up at her and sighed, then asked quietly, "Ali, what am I gonna do?"

She frowned slightly, probably upset that her perkiness hadn't really cheered me up like it usually did. "It will be okay, Bella," she assured me softly.

I rolled my eyes and smirked. "Yeah right…"

"It will," she insisted. "I've seen it Bella," she told me before quieting her voice to a whisper. "I know what you have to tell him about your girls, and I know that it all works out in the end," she told me, patting my back in a comforting gesture.

I furrowed my brow. "But-"

"Just take my word for it," she persuaded me with a small smile and a nod.

I hesitated, but relented with a nod of my own. The second I decided to talk to Edward about his odd behavior and my alternate's violent nature, I knew that Alice had seen the whole conversation play out, along with the ending results. So I just decided to take her word for it.

Alice suggested that we go downstairs and hang out for a bit then, because apparently, I had been spending a lot of time cooped up in my new bedroom. I agreed, liking the sound of that, and followed Alice down the steps, leading to the living room, where the rest of my vampires were lounging at the moment. They all greeted me pleasantly as I came into the room and I took the opportunity to sit in the empty spot next to Esme, who was currently cutting out recipes from several magazines, with a huge smile on her face.

I laughed lightly at her expression. I was happy for her, because she clearly enjoyed every new opportunity that presented itself, where she got to play 'mom', now that I was living here. She paused and wrapped her arm around my shoulder, dropping a quick, cool kiss to the top of my head.

Alice suddenly sat down at my feet and pulled out a bottle of pink nail polish from her pocket, winking up at me. I smiled ruefully at her and shook my head.

_Should'a known…_

I presented my bare feet to Alice as she twisted around and grabbed my Nintendo DS off of the coffee table, where it had been sitting ever since Marie left it there this afternoon. I stayed leaned into Esme's side for a snuggle as I placed my right foot in Alice's lap and flipped open my dark blue DS.

I was surprised to see that it was already paused on a spot in the game, where Marie had obviously left off, so I clicked the button to restart the system and began a new race, from the beginning.

After about ten minutes into my new MarioKart game, I was really enjoying myself and could feel that I had a smile on my face. My princess Peach was kickin everyone's ass in all the races so far. This game was freakin awesome.

**Told ya…** Marie said in a smug voice.

I looked up from my DS then, and watched as Alice delicately put the finishing touches of clear gloss on top of the pink polish that she had painted my toenails with. I smiled at her when she looked up, feeling my gaze on her face.

"Your toes are freakin gorgeous," she complimented.

"Thanks to you," I complimented back.

She just nodded and when I heard Rosalie's exclaimed, ""Fuck yeah!", I looked up to see that she was winning the higher score in her battle with Emmett on Guitar Hero on the PS3.

"I'm just letting you win, baby," he told her as he began pressing the buttons on his black, plastic guitar at a hurried pace.

"In your fuckin dreams, monkey man," she retorted, bringing the tip of her pink guitar in the air, allowing her to score more points at that particular spot in the game.

I rolled my eyes at their playful banter, and looked back to Alice. She wasn't looking at me though…her rapt attention was focused on Jasper, who was sitting in the recliner across the room, with his nose stuck in a book. I recognized it as one from his huge collection of war/military strategy books. I noticed how a smirk began to grow on Jasper's mouth and I knew that he could sense Alice's stare, but he was ignoring her on purpose. I looked back to Alice and giggled at her love struck stare. She tore her transfixed gaze away from her southern lover then, and focused back on me.

"You know the drill, chick. Wait until they dry before you start walking around," she reminded me.

I nodded. "Yeah, I'm just gonna sit here and chill out with my favorite mom," I said lightly while nudging Esme's shoulder a bit with my own.

Esme looked at me and smiled, then turned her attention back to her recipe activity. I let my eyes drift to the coffee table then, and put my DS down on it. I shook my head as I stared at the piled collection of recipes that Esme had gathered so far, all of which were sitting on the coffee table.

A few seconds later, Alice stood from her spot by my feet and stuck her trusty bottle of pink polish back into the side pocket of her designer jeans, then pranced right on over to Jasper, intertwining her fingers with his as she knocked the book off of his lap and placed herself in it's spot, instead.

He smiled up at her, before pressing his lips to hers, and wrapped his arms around her small form, bringing her into his chest for a cuddle as they turned their attention to the lover's battle going on in front of the big screen right now.

Emmett and Rosalie kept topping each other out with their scores, neither of them staying in first place for long. I found myself anticipating who was going to actually win the game, as time went on.

But then Carlisle walked into the room.

EPOV

As I hurried back to the house, I could begin to hear my Bella's heart beat in the distance and I smiled, focusing on it and letting the comforting sound, that is the center of my universe, further relax me, filling me with the assurance that I would be back in her presence any minute now.

I felt terrible for why I had to leave so abruptly earlier. I felt weak…yet, animalistic in my raw desire for her blood. That desire, while always present, is almost always tamed by my combined efforts in staying well-fed and maintaining my self-control. It's obvious to me now, that today's events have caused me an immense amount of stress, making my normally strong barriers, that I have built between myself and the inner-demon, start to chip away, allowing my primal predator to peek through the cracks in my slowly fading control.

Hearing more about my Bella's childhood terrors this morning during her therapy session was enough to put me in a somber mood for the rest of the day. My worry and anxiety were already spiked throughout the day, due to my Bella still being sick with a cold and an occasional fever. Then, Marie's attempt with larceny at the store this afternoon…thinking of all the possible outcomes that her 'bad habit' could have caused, was enough to ignite my rage, and I was only barely able to contain it before I began correcting her behavior in the back seat of my car. And as for my little Isabella…Marie's stories in the car about her and hearing her odd threats of violence toward Jacob filled me with apprehension. Her first period followed soon after, and it caused her to be confused and distressed, which in turn, caused me even more stress. And then there was her insistence on my 'ownership' over her, causing her to further test me in the bathroom, and by that point in the day, I was just fed up and didn't think before I chose to correct her behavior while she was naked in the bathtub, which kind of contradicts her rule of not being naked in front of people. That whole episode probably served to confuse her even more. I really should have waited until after she was out of the tub and dressed, to deal with her little lie and ridiculous temper tantrum.

Despite my best intentions of staying faithful in my promise to my Bella to keep the girls in line, I couldn't seem to stop myself from hurting them today, by taking a few punishments a bit overboard. The fact still remains though; while I realize that I could have handled certain things a little differently, I do not feel guilty about any of my actions. At all.

My Bella and her two alternates are beginning to bring something out in me that I don't know how to deal with. Something that is definitely apart of my true nature as a vampire…something sick that enjoys the sweet scent of her adrenaline and the sounds of her cries.

I internally cringed at my thoughts. I can _never_ let that sadistic part of me take over when it comes to my precious Bella. I can't ever entertain the idea that her pain might bring me pleasure. I resolved to work harder at maintaining my composure in times of chaos. I have to remain in control and calm at all times, no matter what. I have to, somehow, be better for my girls.

After being able to get out of the house and clear my head while feeding on a sufficient amount of blood, I am relieved to know that I can cage the beast once again, and think rationally. And I realize now, that yes…I have been harsh with my girls today. All three of them. That's probably what my Bella was referring to when I had talked to her on the phone. She had said, 'we need to talk', and I had agreed, knowing that we had many things to discuss.

But now that I think about it, Isabella and Marie have probably already filled her in, and my poor Bella is most likely really confused right now. I can only imagine what she must be thinking…seeing those 'memory flashes' that she had told me about, in her mind, of me spanking her naked ass while she cries for me to stop had to be upsetting, to say the least.

And then, after her shower…I had practically attacked her when she was only giving me soft caresses and a comforting kiss, in response to my whining about how much I had missed her. She had stiffened and tried her best to be a good girl, holding completely still, while I worked to tame the lustful beast within. But with every soft-spoken word that fell from her pink lips, and every rosy blush that lit her creamy skin, making her glow for me, she risked the possibility of me biting her.

She was reacting to my words all wrong, taking them as a sexual innuendo, instead of the warning that I had intended them to be. I was going to have to talk to her about that. She obviously likes the idea of me fucking her up against the wall, and while that little scenario does prove to be intensely enticing to me, it's not something that will likely happen in the near future. Apparently, my actions with her last night have gotten her slightly confused. While we can continue in what many people would call 'foreplay'; I am more than willing to explore my Bella's beautiful body with my hands and mouth...intercourse is to remain _off_ the table. Not open for discussion. It is something entirely different, and something incredibly dangerous to her frail, human body…she should know this by now. And she'd better not tempt me like that again.

An argument in the distance abruptly interrupted me out of my reverie.

"Yes," Carlisle's voice insisted.

"No," my girl's light and child-like voice insisted right back.

_Isabella._

Well, it looks like my talk with Bella is going to have to wait.

I picked up my pace and watched, through Carlisle's mind, what was going on in our house at the moment. It appeared that he and Esme were alone in the living room with my little girl, and Isabella was currently standing on the couch, lightly stepping from cushion to cushion, before she climbed over the back of it and slid down, until her feet touched the floor. She was clearly taking the opportunity to climb on things tonight.

"Isabella, don't you think it's a bit late?" he asked in a gentle, bedside manner tone of voice.

Isabella shook her head, silently telling him 'no', and walked around to the front of the couch again, then climbed on and stood up, stepping around to walk on the cushions once more.

"I think it is," he told her.

"Huh-uh, I think it's not," she insisted around the lollipop in her mouth and bounced a little on a cushion.

"Yes. It is," he stated with finality in his voice now.

She paused her subtle bouncing to pull the sucker out of her mouth and shoot him a glare. "I said it's not," she argued.

"It's past your bedtime, Isabella," he informed her.

"You can't tell me what to do, you're not the boss of me," she said before sticking her lollipop back in her mouth for an extra hard suck that hollowed out her pink cheeks.

I rolled my eyes and jumped over the river behind our house then, quickly bounding up the steps to the front door of my house. I could read Carlisle's frustrated thoughts as I walked into the room and saw Isabella standing on the couch, making herself appear taller while simultaneously staring Carlisle down in an obvious effort to intimidate him. It wasn't working, of course, but it was adorable how she tried.

"Isabella," I called her name gently, getting her attention.

She turned to look at me, and a beautiful smile spread across her face. She jumped on her cushion a bit, excited to see me, and giggled out, "My Edward…"

I walked over to her with a small smile of my own. I loved how she missed me so much while I was away hunting these past two times, and she had always been so happy to see me when I returned.

I hooked my hands under her shoulders and brought her over to sit on my hip, so that she wouldn't be standing on Esme's furniture anymore. She wrapped her arms tightly around my neck and kissed my cheek with a small smile, before I kissed her forehead and gently informed her that Carlisle was right.

"It _is_ past your bed time, baby girl," I said, looking at the cable box clock and realizing that it was 2:12 in the morning.

She kept her left arm around the back of my neck and held her lollipop in her right hand. "When is bed time, Edward?" she asked curiously.

I sighed, not really having a definite answer for her. I was going to have to come up with a reasonable bed time for her too. That was just another thing that I could add to my list of mistakes in neglectful parenting. I had forgotten to set a simple bedtime for my little girl, depriving her of the routine and structure that I knew she so desperately needed.

"Um…anytime before midnight, really. I'll give you a specific time tomorrow night," I told her.

"Kay."

"So why aren't you in bed?" I asked.

"Bella was waitin for you…we missed you, Edward. Where'd you go? To eat again?" she asked curiously.

I nodded. "Mm-hmm…" I hummed in reply, not wanting to elaborate any further for my five year old.

I've come to the realization that she hasn't exactly figured out what we are yet.

"How come? You don't like peanut butter and jellies?" she asked, her already soft, high-pitched voice going up another octave with her inquiry.

I chuckled at her adorably confused expression. It's like the idea of _anyone_ not liking those odd sandwiches was completely absurd to her.

"No baby, I don't."

She nodded and sucked on her bottom lip for a second, contemplating this new revelation of my dislike for 'peanut butter and jellies'.

"Hmmm…so what did you go eat?"

"Uhm…" I started to try and figure out how to answer that, but she cut me off before I could come up with anything even remotely convincing.

"Was it yummy?"

_Hardly._

I nodded. "Yeah, baby. It was yummy."

"Kay," she said lightly.

"Edward, see my pretty twinkle toes?" she asked brightly while extending a foot out for my to see her freshly painted toenails.

I nodded. "Yes, _very_ pretty..." I complimented and ran a cool fingertip over her adorable big toe.

She giggled and twirled the lollipop inside her mouth a bit, bringing my attention back onto it.

"And _why_ do you have a lolly right now, angel?" I asked.

She shrugged and blushed, probably just now remembering her rule about that. "B'cuz I fell down and got a owwie…your mommy said that I could have one if I was a big girl and stopped cryin," she told quietly.

My eyes widened and bit and I unconsciously tightened my hold on Isabella at her declaration.

_She had been hurt while I was gone?_

"Where's your owwie?" I asked her softly, in concern.

_Aaaand I can't believe that 'owwie' has become apart of my daily vocabulary._

She raised her bent elbow up for me to see, then pointed to an area where I could see a small bruise already beginning to form. "Right there…" she mumbled around her candy.

I gently grasped her arm in my hand and brought it to my mouth to place a gentle kiss on Isabella's elbow. I lightly ran my cool thumb over the bruised area and shot Esme a look that told her I was clearly not happy with her undermining my authority with my little girl. She wasn't supposed to have any sugar after brushing her teeth before bed. Now, she was clearly too hyper to even think about going to sleep, and it was already after two in the morning.

Esme just shrugged and gave me a small smile, her thoughts telling me that she wasn't apologetic at all, only happy that she could cheer Isabella up and dry her tears with the bribe of one of her precious lollipops.

I contemplated how this might be a problem…Esme playing the doting mother who constantly spoils the child at every turn. I don't care if she caters to Isabella, just as long as it doesn't interfere with what _I_ am trying to accomplish with her, or go against Isabella's simple rules. Like, no candy before bed, for example.

I decided to leave it alone for now, but it was a discussion that we were going to end up having sooner, rather than later.

Isabella kicked her legs out a bit and kissed my cheek. "Edward, I _missed_ you," she told me.

I brought her arm back down to her side and pressed my cool lips to her rosy cheek in return. "I'm here now, baby girl," I placated her.

She nodded.

"I heard what you said to Carlisle," I added, wanting to address this subject while it was still fresh in her mind.

"Hmm?" she hummed at me with a furrowed brow.

"You do need to listen to him-" I started before she cut me off with a shake of her head.

"Huh-uh, Edward…I don't belong to him. I'm your's," she insisted, putting a soft finger to my chest.

I nodded. "That's right Isabella. You _are_ mine, but you need to listen to him when I'm not here. If he says that it's time for bed, angel…then, it's time for bed."

She furrowed her brow in confusion at me for a few seconds, then started looking between me and Carlisle a couple of times, before she chose to voice her silent thoughts.

"So _he's_ my sitter when you go good-bye-byes without me?" she asked curiously while pointing a finger at Carlisle.

_Huh…I guess he would be like a babysitter. Weird._

I nodded and hummed in agreement. "Mm-hmm…him, or Esme."

She dropped her hand back down to her side and huffed. "But Edward, his _hair_…" she muttered a desperate protest to me.

I immediately shook my head. "No. I don't want to hear anymore of this 'ugly yellow hair' business, Isabella," I told her in a firm tone.

She looked me in the eye then, and whispered sadly, "But the peoples with yellow hair don't _like_ me, Edward."

I softened my gaze at her sad expression. "That's not true, baby," I told her in a softly. "Carlisle likes you…very much," I assured her.

_He loves you like a daughter_ I thought to myself, but I didn't tell Isabella that. It would only confuse her further.

Isabella didn't respond, though. She just furrowed her brow at me, then proceeded to turn her head and stare at Carlisle for seventeen seconds before she laid her head down on my shoulder.

I scooted Isabella's body off of my hip and over to my front, then walked over to the same recliner, in the far corner of the room, that I had rocked Isabella in the other day, after her first therapy session with Carlisle had ended. I slowly sat down in it, with those same intentions I had had before. She kept her legs straddled on either side of me and her head stayed lax on my shoulder. I placed my hand on her back, just below her shoulder blades, keeping our chests pressed together as I started the subtle rocking motion of the chair.

She needed to go to sleep, and I was going to try my best to remedy that need for her as soon as possible.

Everything was quiet in the dimly lit room, and soon, Isabella replaced that lollipop in her mouth with her thumb. I held that half eaten candy by it's stick, out to Esme, and she took it from me, throwing it in the trash can by the kitchen.

I continued the slow rocking motion for my little girl, in hopes that she would be asleep soon. She wasn't quite there yet, but she was quiet and her breathing was beginning to even out between her tired sighs.

_Edward…_ Carlisle thought to me.

My eyes immediately shot over to his, and I had a grateful look on my face. I was glad he was choosing this method of communication so that I could keep the atmosphere quiet and calm for my little girl's belated bed time.

She was still fidgeting slightly and sighing occasionally when Carlisle's continued our conversation via his thoughts and my whispers at vampire frequency.

_I spoke with Bella this evening for a while, before Isabella abruptly showed up, effectively cutting off our conversation. I think we were getting a little too close for comfort to a sore spot for her. She seems to absolutely refuse to talk about who it was that she hurt and eventually killed. Isabella is the reason that Bella became a murderer at the tender age of eight…_

"I know."

I tightened my hold on Isabella when she made a soft whimpering noise. I did not like where this conversation was heading.

_Bella told me of her concerns, Edward. She is worried about you and your ability to handle the common stresses of being a new parent. She has seen both Isabella and Marie's memories, and believes that you may have taken your anger out on her more than once today. While she is understanding of your new emotions associated with your current situation, she suggested that you allow the family to help out more. She wanted to know if you were getting any help from us, and I was truthful with her, letting her know that the only one who has contributed was Jasper, and even then, it was only with his talents, and from afar._

I furrowed my brow. What was my Bella thinking? I don't need any damn help. Bella is my mate, my responsibility. I can handle a moody teenager and a naughty five year old, for Christ sakes…no fucking problem. I don't need any damn 'help'.

_Now Edward, I know what you're thinking. But be reasonable…from what I understand, all new parents go through this. And while that is not exactly what you are, you are playing that role with her alternates, especially when it comes to Isabella. And you can't stop with the discipline, that is absolutely not an option. Bella needs you now, more than ever, to exercise your authority over the girls._

That's when Carlisle showed me his perfectly recalled memory of his conversation with my Bella this evening. In his mind's eye, her facial features spanned from worried, to relieved, to apprehensive, to sad and maybe even a bit nervous. She spoke of many things…I watched as she told Carlisle of her concerns about both me, and her alternates.

She asked questions…about the family's contribution, and about how I was coping with it all.

She told him of her suggestions…that I should take breaks, even if it's just to send them outside to play in the back yard for a bit. Anything to separate myself from a stressful situation.

She spoke of the memories that the girls had shown her while she was in the shower…those memories being solely of their spankings today.

She said that she was both confused and worried about my actions towards her after her shower, and said that it brought back memories of our early relationship. She didn't want to have to go through my acclimation phases again.

She missed me.

It wasn't long before she started on the subject of her alternates and what she called their 'true nature'. Their violent thoughts and fantasies…Marie's dangerous game of baiting men, only to lure them to a painful fate of torture at her very capable hands. She revealed that she owned a can of mace and a pair of brass knuckles for the sole purpose of these 'games'.

The subject quickly changed over to Isabella as she described her five-year old alternate's very possessive and jealous nature…she told Carlisle of her school days and how Isabella caused big problems for her. Isabella didn't want my Bella to have any friends due to her dislike for people in general, yet she was insanely jealous of the children who did have friends. She would hurt and torture fellow classmates on the playground…because they either teased my Bella with silly names…or, they just simply appeared to be happy in their home life. When Carlisle had asked more in-depth questions, such as who Isabella had hurt, and how, my Bella would respond, but appeared to be very uncomfortable the entire time. I noticed how her eyes began to repeatedly blink, and I knew then, that Isabella was trying to come into awareness to prevent any further discussion in the matter. When Carlisle asked the magic question of, 'who did Isabella kill', my little girl quickly won that 'awareness battle' with Bella, and immediately shot Carlisle a cold glare, telling him that it was 'none of his fucking business' before she suggested that he 'take his ugly yellow hair back to his room and go fuck himself'.

_Lovely._

Carlisle continued speaking through his thoughts when his memory with Bella had finished playing out.

_But she also needs you to keep in mind how sensitive, confused, and broken they are. You have to be able to take a step back, away from the situation, and let somebody else handle it for you. Go for a walk, or a drive…just something to separate yourself from a stressful situation before you let your emotions take control and you end up taking all that anger out on your mate. Believe me…you will end up regretting it. I know the idea of needing any kind of help with her, is repulsive to you right now, but if you let us, your family, play a more active role in Bella's situation, you will not be disappointed with the results. You'll find yourself relieved that you can take a break every once in a while, instead of constantly being weighed down with the burden of your new responsibilities._

I gave him a slight glare. "My girls are _not_ a burden."

He shook his head. _That's not what I'm saying, and you know it. Take a step down from defensive mode, Edward, and just listen to what I am saying. We are your family. We love both you, and Bella. We want to help._

I relaxed my shoulders and nodded at him, softening my features when I read the genuine feelings associated with his thoughts.

I could do it…if this is what my Bella suggests, then I can at least try. I could relax my ever-present protective mode over my mate, and let my family in…I could let them help.

But that's _all_ they would be doing - helping. They would not try to 'help' me in my role as an authority figure for my three girls. That is _my_ job, and _mine_ alone. I better not ever catch any of them raising a hand to my girl. I don't even want them yelling at her.

Those hypothetical thoughts only served to fill me with an incredible amount of anger, causing my ingrained and uncontrollable need to protect my mate flare up. I found myself tightening my already snug hold on Isabella, who was just seconds away from unconsciousness at the moment, by the way.

I could do this. For my Bella. I would do anything for her.

My beautiful Bella.

_My broken Bella..._

I sighed.

So, okay…I would let my family help.

I would force myself to walk away when things prove to be too stressful.

And I would let my family take over for me, until I could get myself under control, so that I don't end up doing anything that I will end up regretting later on.

I will let my family help me.

_Hmm… _

Maybe.

* * *

A/N:

So what do you think Edward will do?

Will he relent and welcome his family's help, or will he stay consumed with his pride and hold firm to the belief that _his _Bella doesn't need anyone but _him_?

And can you believe our little Isabella? Torturing little kids on the playground...damn, she's a bad fuckin kid.

Anyways, let me know your amazing thoughts and feedback in a fantastical REVIEW so that I can read alllllll about it when I get back home tonight :)

~ talk at ya later darlings xoxoxo ~


	37. My Turn

A/N:

As always, kids, Bella's flashbacks of graphically described abuse will be in italics for you sensitive readers that would like to skip over the cringyness of it all

Kay, back to story time now ~ ENJOY! :)

* * *

EPOV

The morning brought on a very cranky Isabella. My baby girl didn't seem to want to do much of anything, except lay in bed and cuddle. She woke up shortly after 6am, latched onto both me, and her thumb, mumbling about her tummy hurting as salty little tears began to fall from her bleary chocolate eyes. I knew that those wretched cramps were hurting her, and it drove me crazy that I couldn't completely take my angel's pain away, but I did damn well _everything_ I could think of to help her feel better.

After I prepared a brand new pair of padded panties for her, I told her to use the bathroom and change out her panties.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because I said so, baby," I said, not wanting to explain that she would probably have to change out of her panties with a new padded pair that I would supply for her, quite a few times today.

"But how come?"

"Because you need to wear clean panties, baby girl."

"But they're clean…" she insisted in a mumble around her thumb.

I shook my head. "No…they're not, angel. Just go use the bathroom sweetheart. You'll see what I mean when you're in there," I informed her gently.

"But I don't gotta potty, Edward."

I nodded. "That's fine. Just go in there and change your panties then."

"But I like my pretty stars…" she said shyly, reminding me of the blue panties that I had picked out for her last night.

I held out the pink panties that I had just put a pad on and showed them to her, knowing she wouldn't be able to resist. "These have pretty little flowers, angel," I said in a light, persuading tone.

She smiled and took them from my hand, then followed my advice and went to the bathroom. When she was through in there, she came back out and snuggled up in my lap, telling me how her new flowers looked pretty on her. I was sure that the panties I had picked out looked nothing less than damn perfect on her, but my only response was to kiss her temple and inform her that she needed to eat. She pouted at me, saying that she didn't want to, but I insisted. I didn't care how she felt, she would still be eating three meals a day. So, after a small bowl of fruity pebbles cereal, which seemed to be her favorite, I let her take some ibuprofen for the pain.

She didn't want to get dressed yet, or dress her dolly for the day, for that matter, so I let her stay in her soft, cotton pajamas while I broke out the brand new heating pad. After I plugged it in, I put it on the second heat intensity setting, and had her lay face down on the bed, and on top of the heating pad, so that the blue material was touching her from her adorable little belly button to the tops of her creamy white thighs.

I put the Disney movie, Hercules, on at her request, then joined her, laying sideways across the large space on the king size bed. I put a pillow under Isabella's head and rubbed her back while she paid attention to her movie. I would lightly trail my fingers along the entire length of her back, but when I reached her lower back, I would massage little circles into the tense muscles that I found there. I ignored the juvenile movie on the screen and instead, wrote Isabella secret little notes on her delicate shoulder blades and arms…messages like 'I love you', 'pretty baby girl' and 'you're so sweet' were traced onto her soft skin with my cool fingertip.

Isabella would try and sneak her thumb multiple times throughout the movie. Each and every time, I would catch her and gently pull it out of her mouth. She would silently comply, keeping her transfixed stare on the screen, but not five minutes later, that enticing thumb would always find it's way back to her pouty pink lips. After the seventh time of silently removing it, I started to lightly comb my fingers through her long hair and kept my sharp eyes on that sneaky little thumb. Almost four minutes later, as if on cue, it started on the path back to Isabella's mouth.

"Mm-mm, Isabella," I murmured quietly by her ear.

Her arm stopped it's upward decent on the blanket and she kept her distracted gaze on the movie. My fingers continued playing in her hair and sixty-eight seconds later, her thumb began it's quest again.

I took my hand out of her silky hair and lightly patted her bottom in warning. "I said no," I told her, a bit firmer this time.

"Edward?" she murmured.

"Yes, baby?"

"My thumb is mad at you," she told me matter-of-factly.

I chuckled and gently grabbed her wrist. "Aw…"

I brought her little hand to my mouth and placed a quick kiss to the tip of her warm thumb, then muttered, "Sorry," to it.

"It forgives you…" she mumbled sleepily.

Ten minutes later, her thumb had succeeded in it's destination to her mouth and she was fast asleep again, the movie completely forgotten.

I wasn't surprised. She had only gotten four hours of sleep in before she woke up to those damn cramps. I was just glad that I could get some pain medicine in her and rub out those tense muscles, so that she could be comfortable enough to get some more much needed sleep.

I slowly extracted that thumb from her mouth one last time, and got up from the bed then. I tucked her pink micro-plush blanket around her, so that she wouldn't get cold, and I turned the heat intensity setting of the pad down to number one, so that it would still ease her pain, but she wouldn't get overheated in the process. I turned the Hercules movie off and put it back in it's case, then I put that away.

Esme came up to the room and sat on the bed then, running her gentle finger's through my sleepy girl's hair while we discussed a few things. I told her that I didn't want that whole lollipop incident to happen again. Isabella is not allowed candy before bedtime, and that's final. She agreed, but remained unapologetic about bribing my naughty little girl last night. I relented, knowing that that was the best I could expect from Esme. She would continue to cater to, and spoil my Bella…no matter who she may be at any given moment.

I talked to her about using the spare room as a home gym, complete with a punching bag and some boxing gloves. I told her that I planned on using it as an outlet to Marie's inevitable aggression…and, if I'm not mistaken, Isabella's, too. I let her know how it could be positive in more ways than one. Marie seemed to love getting her heart rate up…the rush of adrenaline, whether it be from fear, excitement, or fast-paced activities, she absolutely loved it. She liked exercising…running, sports, biking, whatever. So, the indoor gym equipment would give her an opportunity to '_feel the burn'_, if you will, when her other options of various outdoor activities were not available…either due to bad weather, or bad behavior.

I've been thinking about it, and I've come to the conclusion that if she is ever an insufferable little brat, like she usually is at least once throughout the day, and I just really don't want the stress that accompanies actually spanking her, then there is always the option of taking away her possessions and privileges, just like Isabella's alternative to a spanking is a time-out, either in a chair or in a corner. So, if she wanted to run around outside, or shoot some hoops, but wasn't permitted to, then I could always send her to that room and tell her to have fun on the treadmill, or bike instead. Maybe I could set up a little hoop on the wall in there, too…_maybe_.

Also, when the girl's temper and anger are out of control, and they seem to be fixated on wanting to piss one of us off, just to get a rise out of us, or initiate some kind of fight, I could just send them in there, throw a pair of boxing gloves at them, and instruct them to take their anger out on the punching bag. I plan on standing in the room, off to the side, and barking loud orders at them in a punishing manner, like their own personal drill sergeant…demand that they keep going at the big bag hanging from the ceiling; throw faster punches, give harder blows, kick at it a little bit…give me some push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups, whatever. I wouldn't let them stop until they were breathless, sweaty and exhausted, effectively draining all of that pent-up aggression from my Bella's little body.

She agreed, as did Emmett downstairs, and Alice got on the task right away of getting online and ordering a home gym, with various equipment, along with that crucial punching bag. After some prodding from Emmett and going back and forth between my decisions, I finally relented and told Alice to order a mini-workout-trampoline for Isabella and another basketball hoop that we could nail to the wall for Marie. Esme also thought that things for Yoga would be beneficial for my Bella, also. For, you know…Isabella's flexibility and my Bella's need to just relax every once in a while. So, Alice ordered a special mat and videos for that, as well, along with a few other special work-out machines that usually only appear on late night infomercials.

Alice put a rush order on everything, so that meant that we should expect my girl's new gym set-up to be ready in the next three days.

I smiled, a bit relieved that I had gotten that whole mess taken care of and out of the way. I had been worried about what I was going to do when one of my girls loses her inevitable hot temper…or, their sadistic cravings (that I can relate to all too well, myself) takes over their mind, causing them to want to hurt somebody, or something. Now they had an outlet for all of that, and I had a little peace of mind.

After that was taken care of, Esme informed me in her soft voice that her and Carlisle were planning on taking a two-day hunting trip to feast on the overpopulated wildlife in California. She asked if I wanted to come along, reminding me of my statement that I would let my family help out with my girls a lot more from now on. Still, I declined. I couldn't imagine leaving my Bella for more than a day. And Isabella wouldn't understand at all. She would be extremely upset. No. My baby needs me. Esme nodded, understanding my anxiety on the matter, and didn't push any further.

Of course, with the planned hunting trip taking place, that would mean that my Bella's therapy session would have to take place today, instead of tomorrow, but that also meant that she would have a much needed two-day break after this.

I nodded in understanding and let my mother know that as soon as my sleeping beauty awoke, I would get her dressed and have her in Carlisle's study shortly afterwards. I lay beside my perfect angel then, and watched as she slept.

Eventually, I grabbed a book and started reading, just trying to pass the time. I stayed perfectly silent and still, not wanting to interrupt her peaceful slumber. She would need the rest for what she didn't know was coming later on.

I wanted her therapy session to be over before her lunch time, so around 10am, I scooted closer to my girl and started my new favorite task of kissing her awake. I was surprised that she wasn't up yet, but figured that her late bedtime and the effects of that medicine were playing a factor to her sleeping in late this morning. I kissed her adorable little button nose, her pink-tinged cheeks, her soft forehead, and then her small chin. Her eyelids began to flutter, so I made the rounds once more.

Nose, cheek, cheek, forehead, then chin.

"Wake up, pretty girl," I whispered softly, and began trailing my light fingers along her exposed arm that had come untucked from the pink blanket about thirty minutes ago.

She moaned sleepily. "Nooo…" she muttered in reply.

"Yessss…" I countered softly.

She scrunched up her button nose, but kept her eyes closed. "Edward?"

"Yeah baby?"

"Don't wanna," she mumbled.

I chuckled lightly into her silky hair. "I know, baby, but you need to," I insisted.

"Mmm-mm," she muttered, with closed eyes.

"Open your eyes, angel."

"Huh-uh…"

"Yes, let me see 'em," I persuading gently and started tickling her sides.

She cracked a small smile and giggled lightly, but continued to keep her chocolate depths from my view.

"Isabella, let me see 'em…" I tried again.

"Why?" she whispered.

"Because they are pretty," I said lightly.

Her eyes popped open then, and seeing my face in close proximity to hers, she smiled at me.

I kissed her button nose. "There they are," I said softly and smiled adoringly at her, staring intently into her eyes.

She kissed my cheek then and rolled over to stretch. I got off the bed and went over to the dresser, getting ready to do the mundane, womanly task of preparing another pair of padded panties for my confused little girl.

Maybe I would teach her how to put a pad on all by herself. But maybe not. Maybe I get some kind of sick pleasure out of doing everything for her…as if she were helpless. Yeah…maybe not. I prepare her panties. And I pick out her clothes. Not her.

_I_ do.

I smiled at how thoroughly I could take care of my little girl, and quickly attached the now familiar small pad to the inside of yet, another pair of panties. They were white and red this time. White cotton panties with little red cherries decorating the thin fabric.

"Here…" I said, as Isabella came to stand beside me.

I handed her the panties and she stared at me, confused.

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

"Again?"

"Yes."

"But how come?" she asked with furrowed, thin eyebrows.

I gave her a small smile. "We're going to be doing this a few times every day until the bleeding stops, baby," I informed her gently.

"But why?"

"Just go change your panties, sweetheart," I insisted, turning her body in the direction of the bathroom.

"But-" she started, but I cut her off.

"You'll see what I'm talking about when you get in there, angel. Trust me, I know these things. Was I right this morning?" I asked from my position behind her.

She nodded.

"Okay, baby. See? I know what I'm doing…I'll take care of you," I assured her. "Every few hours, or so, you need to change into a clean pair of panties that I'll have ready for you," I informed softly in her ear.

"Kay…" she relented, then walked off to the bathroom, new panties in hand.

While Isabella was in the bathroom, I folded her pink blanket and stuck it back in the closet, where it belonged, before going through my Bella's wardrobe, trying to pick an outfit for her to wear today.

I knew from experience that when my Bella is menstruating, she feels bloated, among other things, so I was trying to avoid her jeans, and pants all together. I didn't want her to have to deal with an uncomfortable waist band throughout the day, making her more irritable then she was already bound to be.

So, that narrowed down my selection to her adorable spring and summer dresses. I picked a red one, with thin spaghetti shoulder straps. It would hug her curves nicely and come down to her mid-thigh area. The fabric was soft and thin, and would allow for her heating pad to work it's magic on her aching muscles sooner, rather than later, when she uses it today.

When Isabella came out of the bathroom, I handed her the dress and sent her right back in the direction she had come. She scowled and asked why she couldn't just get dressed in the bedroom. I reminded her of her rule about getting naked in front of people, so she reluctantly turned and went back into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. When she came out, looking as beautiful as ever, in what _I_ chose for her to wear, I informed her of what was next.

She was not happy.

"No!" she yelled at me.

"Isabella, baby…I know that it wasn't supposed to happen until tomorrow, but there was a change of plans-" I tried explaining before she cut me off with a stomp of her foot.

"No, Edward, I don't wanna see the doctor," she insisted.

I nodded quickly in acknowledgment. "I know, angel, but you don't have a choice. Carlisle is leaving tomorrow, so therapy will be happening this morning, and then you get to have a little two day break from it all," I informed her, trying to stay positive on the matter.

"Nooo…" she whined.

I gave her a stern look. "Isabella, quit whining-"

"I don't _want_ to see the doctor," she repeated, ignoring my warning and screaming out the word 'want'.

"Isabella, stop," I told her, referring to her developing temper tantrum.

"No! I'm not going!" she insisted in a shout, before she scrambled to get into her favorite hiding spot, under the bed, as quickly as possible.

I simply rolled my eyes at her display.

_Well, this is quickly going to shit and getting out of hand._

I sighed and bent down to reach under the bed. I gently grabbed her left ankle, ignoring her kicking and protests of 'no doctors', and softly tugged, pulling her back out from underneath the large bed.

She started crying, so I swatted her little ass. "Stop throwing a fit, Isabella," I told her, lifting her up into my arms.

Once I had her legs wrapped around my waist, I started for the bedroom door, and she began pushing against my chest. She let out a frustrated cry as angry tears ran down her flushed cheeks.

"No, Edward!" she yelled, kicking her feet out at nothing.

I ignored her and continued my decent down to the second floor.

"Edward, I want dooown…" she whined.

I looked at her and shook my head, never ceasing my steps. "No," I said quietly in a calm voice.

"Yes!" she screamed back in my face.

I glared at her and quickly withdrew my hand, only to bring it back and spank her ass again. "What did I tell you about yelling in people's faces?" I asked through gritted teeth.

She didn't answer, just let out another desperate cry and eventually relaxed her body against mine, giving up her fight.

When we reached the door to Carlisle's study, Isabella had stopped crying for the most part, and spoke up again.

"Edward, come with me…" she pleaded in a voice that cracked.

I shook my head sadly. "We've been over this, angel. I can't. But I'll be right here when you're done," I reminded her.

She pouted and kicked her legs again, but I ignored it and knocked on Carlisle's door. He immediately responded with, "Come in," to which Isabella countered with a loud, "No!"

"Hush, Isabella," I admonished her.

She whined and pouted the entire walk over to her leather, high-backed chair in front of Carlisle's desk. I gently set her down in it and turned my back to Carlisle, squatting down in front of my head-strong, stubborn little girl. I kept my face stern and my voice firm, effectively giving off that 'owner' vibe, that I knew she wasn't likely to disobey.

"Isabella, you _will_ behave."

Her eyes widened a bit and she sniffled, but nodded, nonetheless.

"Isabella, you _will_ cooperate."

She nodded.

I softened my gaze then, and nodded at her in return.

I stomped down the familiar feelings of anxiety rising in me at the idea of leaving her in here to discuss the things of her past. I simply refused to let Isabella know that I was upset, as well.

Instead, I whispered, "I love you."

She mumbled back, "Love you, too…"

I kissed her forehead. "Be a good girl," I instructed, before I stood quickly, and left the room.

I shut the door behind me, to give my mate a false sense of privacy, and gracefully sank down onto the floor, assuming my usual position outside of my father's study. I resolved to keep my steady promise and wait right here, in this spot, until she was finished talking.

I clenched my jaw, tightened my fists, closed my eyes, and focused on Carlisle's mind, while steeling myself against the new horrors that my cursed vampire ears would greedily absorb in the next hour.

My breath exhaled in a rush as I saw, through Carlisle's mind's eye, that my Bella's eyes were beginning to blink rapidly.

_Isabella…my naughty little escape artist._

Bella looked at Carlisle with a slightly confused expression. Carlisle kept silent, but returned her look with one of expectance.

"Um…Carlisle…" Bella mumbled, her quick eyes taking a second to scan the room and take in her surroundings.

"Hello Bella," he greeted with a warm smile.

"Hi," she replied in a quiet voice. "Um…I know this is going to sound like a _really_ stupid question, but could you tell me what's…um, what's going on?" she asked uncertainly.

His golden eyes reassured her as he explained that they were in the beginning of a therapy session. He told my Bella that Isabella had protested the entire way down, eventually going out of awareness once I had left the room, simultaneously leaving her with no other option but to cooperate at my demand that she do so.

I saw my Bella nod in understanding, and wipe the wet tears off of her beautiful rosy cheeks with the tissue that Carlisle had handed her.

She blew her nose then asked in a resigned voice, "Well…shall we begin?"

He nodded and opened the leather journal that was placed on the big, wooden desk in front of him. With his pen in hand, and his sharp eyes intent on my Bella, he was ready to go. Excited, even. My father was always eager for new information.

I sighed and gripped my hair in both of my hands. I guess I was as ready as I would ever be. I sat back and listened to my mate's beautiful, melodic voice as she told her tales of horror and abuse.

BPOV

Focusing on Mr. Squiggly Line was always an easy thing to do. He distracted me, and kept me talking. I only let my eyes drift to the clock every once in a while, so that I could subconsciously count the minutes until I would be back in Edward's arms. I missed him.

My mind space was quiet as Carlisle hastily explained that this was actually tomorrow's intended therapy session, but that he and Esme planned to be out of town for the next two days, so he was putting my health first and attending to me, before he left this evening.

I nodded, not really needing an explanation from him. I would talk for as long, and as often as he wanted me to.

I mean, it's not like it was doing anything, anyway.

I remained somewhat numb as I recounted certain memories. I wasn't sure if it was going to be like this during the sessions where Carlisle would eventually interact with my alternates alone, but this was how it worked for me. Aside from a few tears…I was numb. I just didn't care.

Isabella and Marie felt all of my old pain so that I wouldn't have to. That was their purpose. That's why they were here. I liked it that way. And it would fucking stay that way.

'Why?' you ask?

Because I'm weak. And I can't deal with their bullshit.

I sighed at my thoughts, and began.

"Bella, you said that Jim had a son…" Carlisle trailed off suggestively.

I cringed and felt a pang of sadness at the thought of Bobby.

**Way to start a conversation, doc** Marie said sarcastically, feeling my pain and reluctance on the subject.

**My BubbaBobby…** Isabella's voice whispered the old nickname we had always used for him.

"Um, yeah…" I started, shifting uncomfortably in my chair.

I decided then, to just dive right in. So I did.

_It took about a month's time, but we eventually became really close. We bonded, I guess you could say…as all siblings should. Bobby would bring books home from his big-kid school and in the afternoons, he would teach me how to read. It was easy. Then, he taught me my numbers…addition and subtraction. That was simple, too. I loved any attention from my new big brother. BubbaBobby was what I would call him during our first year of living under the same roof. Jim would eventually keep me in the basement, regardless of whether Bobby was home, or not. He terrorized his son into thinking that I would be given away if he told anyone. He told both of us that I wasn't really his child…that my mommy was a whore and that I was the spawn of an evil kike. Bobby told me that he didn't care what Daddy said…that I was his baby sister, and nobody could change that. Bobby and I became closer in the face of the now open abuse. He would put band-aids on my burns, and sneak me cookies if I had my dinner plate taken away before I could finish. Often, at night, Bobby would come into my bedroom to check to see if I was okay. He was sure that I was going to be killed, too. There were nights when we would lay in bed together, our small bodies close and our little heads touching, and we talked of running away, but we always had the constant dilemma of having no money and no place to go, standing in our way.  
"Something's wrong with Dad," was his explanation. "Should we tell Momma?"  
"No, Bobby…" I whispered back into the darkness. "I don't want to be given away to the bad men," I told him, referring to the men that had already come to see me many times. "Please don't tell Mommy," I pleaded.  
The times of burns and painful cuts, when I would scream, really upset Bobby.  
"I hate him. He's an asshole," he said, referring to our dad.  
Only Bobby and Isabella were ever angry. I was simply too terrified of the repercussions of anger. Any signs of aggression on my part was always accompanied by brutal pain._

I watched Carlisle's pen fly across the page of his journal, then focused back on my squiggly line and continued talking, not missing a beat.

_I was a very allergic child, having bouts of asthma frequently. Animal fur was an especially potent allergen to me. Jim gave me an Easter bunny once. I was thrilled at the concept of getting a present from him. I desperately wanted him to love me. He took the bunny and rubbed the fur all around my face, tickling me with the softness. I began wheezing, and that night had asthma so badly that I had to be rushed to the hospital because I couldn't breathe. I felt confusion: joy at my daddy giving me a fluffy bunny, upset that I was allergic to it, and devastation that my mom would have to give away my new present. Jim would take me to the pet store and let me hold the kittens and bunnies, eventually rendering me breathless with the inevitable sneezing and asthma attacks. It took me months to figure out that his gesture was not a loving one._

Carlisle nodded.

Edward growled.

I rolled my eyes.

Edward was obviously on the other side of that door, from the sound of it. He had asked me the other day if I was keeping anything else from him when Isabella had ratted me out on being a pansy who was allergic to bees. I had told him 'no'. Ooops. Looks like I lied. Oh well. He's lied to me, so he can fucking get over it.

Isabella giggled at my thoughts, while Marie had a completely different reaction.

**You better not get our ass busted, Bell** she warned. **I'm getting tired of that shit, and the tiny terror over here isn't fucking helping matters any** she told me, hinting towards the possibility that Isabella was causing more trouble that I didn't know about yet.

I carried on, ignoring them and thinking of any random memory, and speaking freely…just trying to pass the time.

_The summer I was about to start school was a happy one. Mom took us camping in the High Sierras. Jim stayed home. We fished and cooked our meals over the campfire. We ate fish for dinner and pancakes for breakfast, because that was about all Mom knew how to cook. The three of us slept in a tent which made strange noises when the wind blew, but we had Mommy next to us. She would put her arm across Bobby and me as we scrunched down in the sleeping bag that we shared. Being squished by Mom's arm was the best feeling in the world. One afternoon, Bobby got to use Jim's gun that we had brought with us.  
He whispered to me, "I would never kill anything, except maybe Dad."  
When we returned from our camping trip, Mom gave me permission to cross the streets near our house from then on, so that Bobby and I could go to the park. Down the block and across the street, at the corner, lived an old man with no front teeth. He sat on his porch with his big green parrot and let us give peanuts to the bird, who cocked his head to the side and said, "Good-bye, I'm pretty." I thought being able to go places with Bobby was the most wonderful thing that had ever happened to me. We made friends at the park. They even let me play games with them. There were swings, a slide, and monkey bars. I could run and play tag, and hide-and-go-seek. In one giant leap, my world expanded beyond the basement and the pain. I could laugh at the park, and not get a beating for it.  
I asked Isabella, "Why don't you want to play with Bobby and my new friends?"  
"Nobody likes me," was her quick, harsh reply. Her voice softened back to normal when she spoke again. "I only want to play with you. Besides, no one believes that I'm really real."  
It was true. Bobby teased me unmercifully when I talked about Isabella. Sometimes I would let her play, but we kept it a secret that she was there. I didn't like being laughed at._

My hand automatically shot to my forehead when Isabella chose to show me a specific memory then. Carlisle gave me a curious look as I softly fingered the small mark on skin, just above my right eyebrow.

_Just before kindergarten was about to start, when I was almost six, Jim was mad at something or other, so he threw me up against the corner of the dining room table, gashing my forehead open in the process.  
He taped the jagged edges back together and as I sat crying, he said in a smug tone, "Good. Now, you'll have an ugly scar and everyone will see it. They will all know that you are a fucking wicked little girl."  
The mark of evil was more humiliation than I could bear. I didn't want to go to school. I didn't even really know for sure what exactly school was, but I knew that I didn't want people to know that I was bad. I begged Mommy to let me stay home forever. I cried and told her that I didn't want anyone to see my scar. She said that I was being ridiculous, and that it was just a little scar…that, with time, it wouldn't be red anymore. The next day, Mommy brought me and little red garnet stone in a tiny velvet box.  
She sat me in her lap and rocked me in a comforting embrace as she said, "There is a place called India, and women who are princesses wear stones like this on their foreheads. They cut their head, just like you have, and they decorate themselves. They think that it makes them special. I think your scar makes you special."  
It was always a double message. Evil. Special. Wicked. Princess. Kike. Sunshine. After Mommy's present, I felt better about the scar, but still very shy. The first day of school, I walked around with my hand over my forehead. The new children asked me why I had my hand on my head, but I remained quiet and sucked my thumb.  
At recess, one boy pulled my hand away and said, "Oh, just a scar."  
I was relieved that he didn't gasp and acknowledge how bad I was. After that, I began to play._

_I instantly fell in love with my teacher. He had a handsome face full of sweet smiles, brown hair, and wore neat-looking, professional clothes. I began to follow him around everywhere. I was his willing slave for any school project. Already knowing how to read and write made me an instant success. I could tie my shoes and tell time, too. Mr. McDonald liked me. He would let me sit in his lap sometimes, and he always called on me to help with the other kids. I tried to kiss his cheek whenever he leaned over, and I held onto his hand whenever he would let me.  
One day after school, I was lingering around as usual, and I asked him with pleading eyes, "Can I be your little girl? I'll be good and really quiet. Please take me home with you."  
He looked at me with kind, green eyes, and said, "Bella, I would love to have you as my little girl…but you have a mother and father who love you very much. They would miss you," he insisted.  
I couldn't tell him about my daddy.  
So, instead, I said very quietly, "I want to be yours."  
I stood very close to him, fingering the soft folds of his pant leg, and struggling against my desire to hug him hard and never let go.  
He squatted down in front of me then, and scooped some of my long hair behind my ear with one of his big fingers.  
He smiled gently at me and said, "They are probably missing you right now. Go home, Bella," he told me in a soft voice.  
I remember walking home from school slowly, feeling the rejection and not wanting to return home. Mommy loved me, but she was never there._

**That's b'cuz she's a whore and doesn't care 'bout us, Bella** Isabella supplied.

**Fuck her. Fucking cock-suckin, anal-lube-tastic, Nazi-lovin bitch…** Marie added.

_Awesome._

I went on, ignoring the internal insults directed at my clueless mother.

_Soon after that, I fell asleep for a nap in the living room with bubblegum in my mouth, and it apparently fell out, landing on the unlucky carpet, and Mom had to cut the sticky pink wad out of the brown bristles with a pair of scissors. So naturally, this was an opportunity for Jim to give me some more of that damned 'purity'. He hit my face repeatedly with the heel of his hand until he eventually broke my nose. His eyes lit up and I saw how he smiled as my screams filled the confined space of the room he had us in. He liked this room a lot, and eventually used it for all of my 'purity sessions'. I remember him saying something to the effect of it having the best 'echo-capabilities'.  
"Fucking scream for me!" he yelled with excited, dancing eyes, trying to over-power my high pitched wails with his deep, but booming loud and echoing voice.  
At my constant screams and sobs, he grinned and stated proudly, "I will give you purity, Isabella." As if he had fucking accomplished something.  
Going to school the next day, with cotton packing stuffed up my nose and a big bandage across my face, made me terrified that someone would guess Daddy had hurt me. The idea of being saved never seemed an option; it was the fear of Jim's retribution if anyone discovered the truth that had me terrified. I made up some kind of lie. It was hard to breathe with the bandage, but I loved the colorful look of the skin around my eyes going from red, to purple, to green._

_It wasn't until I began school that I noticed my episodes of 'losing the time'. I could be sitting in my little circle of classmates, with my hands folded, listening to a story of Dr. Seuss, and the next thing I would be aware of, was Mr. McDonald asking in an angry tone, "Bella, just what do you think you're doing?" In my hand would be chalk and I would be standing at the blackboard in front of all these wild drawings, while the whole class snickered at me. It was the regimentation and accountability for my actions that made me realize I wasn't like everyone else. I just sort of drifted away and did things I wasn't aware of. It was devastating, because I wanted desperately to be liked. The academic work at school came easily for me, but I was distressed that if I didn't pay attention, then my mind would slip away somewhere. Isabella didn't always want to stay in a desk at school. I got in trouble a lot for wandering around the classroom when I didn't even know I had done it. That was to begin my lifetime of covering up and apologizing for my 'twin'.  
I could feel my little cheeks grow hot and pink as my teacher said, "For goodness sakes, Bella, you're out of your seat again. Can't you sit still and pay attention like the other students?"  
I whispered, "Isabella, stay in the desk. I don't like to get in trouble." Out loud, I said, "I'm sorry, Mr. McDonald."  
"I wasn't bein bad," Isabella insisted. "You always blame me when you get in trouble. It's not fair!"  
"Well, that's because you're the one that always does the bad stuff," I offered her as an explanation._

**You still do that** Isabella told me.

_Yeah, and you're still the one that does the bad stuff_ I replied.

**Bad ass, bratty little kid** Marie added.

**Fuck you** Isabella retorted.

_Okay. Both of you - shut up._

When my mental space was silent again, I continued.

_That year was punctuated with some happy times spent with Granny Hadassah, new friends, long days at school, and the realization that I got approval for being smart. But there were days when it was agony to sit still with my bruised back and bottom, or my little-girl parts that had just been recently hurt by Jim._

_The first thing I did when I was introduced to the school library was ask for books on blindness. I had been terrorized by the threat of being blinded so often, that it seemed imperative for me to find out all I could about it. I know now that it was really Isabella's survival instincts kicking in, that caused that. I found a book about Braille, and color coded all of my clothes in my closet. I taught myself to eat as though my plate were a clock and the hands pointed to the food. Bobby and I practiced with 'meat at nine o'clock, corn at five'. In my mind, it was a very important, very vital game._

_Even at six years old, I knew something was alarmingly wrong with my daddy. I didn't have labels like 'mentally ill', I just knew that other people didn't treat me like he always did. In a deep, aching way, I wanted him to love me. Even the slightest of smiles or the occasional soft touch while in Mommy's presence, was enough for me to fantasize that maybe if I tried harder, he would love me. I can't explain the intense loyalty that I felt towards him. Partly it was fear, and partly it was that I loved him because he was my daddy. I felt very proud on Valentine's Day when I had brought Jim my plaster plate with my hand print on it and a big loop of red yarn for hanging it up. It had been an important project at school, and I thought that my daddy would know how much I loved him when he unwrapped the white, wrinkled tissue paper. I had wrapped, unwrapped, and rewrapped it dozens of times, fantasizing an enveloping hugging scene with Daddy. I dared to lean against his shoulder, standing next to him as he sat at the kitchen table and opened the paper. I shyly reached up and fingered his soft blonde curls that were cascading just below his ear, and I even touched the soft fabric of the collar on his shirt. Without saying a word, he lay the plate on the table, then got up to go to the back porch. He reentered the kitchen with a hammer and a big nail. My heart soared with joy that he was going to actually hang my handprint up on the wall. Instead, he came over to the table, picked it up, and placed a few newspapers underneath it. Then, looking right at me and not saying a word, he placed the nail in the middle of my plaster palm and brought the hammer down hard. The plate fractured into white chunks. The symbolism of his act was abundantly clear to me. I shrank back against the kitchen wall, feeling the tears coursing down my cheeks that were as white as the plaster._

Carlisle looked at me sympathetically after that particular tale. I just shrugged, feeling nothing but disgust at my constant and unexplained loyalty to that evil man, then soldiered on.

_Some things I just accepted. Because I was evil, I must be burned, hit, and locked up. Yet other things, even with my life of abuse, I innately knew to be wrong. Once, when I was five, and my 12yr old cousin was visiting, I remember my sense of alarm when Jim had made us take baths together while he sat on the lid of the toilet, watching us and directed me to do things to him. He sat there, belt and purity knife in hand, and commanded me to pay attention to what German boys looked like. He said that he would not have me whoring around like my mother did, and let a dirty kike taint my cunt. He spoke to his angel as he sat there, running the knife's sharp blade up and down, along his favorite leather belt that he liked to beat me with. Once, he took that purity knife and held it to me, forcing me to suck on the teenager's penis. He squirmed and laughed, as his dick grew and stiffened in my mouth. I don't remember what Jim said, but I remember feeling that what we were doing was very wrong…especially since he had threatened me with that damn knife._

Carlisle nodded in agreement and gave me a reassuring smile, never stopping the motion of his pen.

_When I was six, the Kendalls, who had sent my mom to college and law school, came down from New York to visit us. I remember how excited Mommy was about the visit; cleaning, planting flowers, giving me and Bobby instructions on how to be polite. They were wonderful people, even asking Bobby and me to call them Grandma and Grandpa. Mr. Kendall had a loud laugh and wore a big gold watch, which hung on a low chain, tucked into his pocket. Mrs. Kendall had hair that was a white-blue color and it was so thin that I could see her pink scalp peeking through. They brought us toys…Bobby got a new fire truck and I got a new doll, which, of course, Jim took away from me later. That was a nice week. We went to restaurants and the zoo with them. When they left, Grandpa Kendall pressed six silver dollars into my hand, one for each year of my life. Bobby got eight. We marveled at our wealth. Dad and Mom had never given us money, even though we knew that we were rich compared to the other kids at school. We had lotts of clothes. I even had some jewelry. Jim would dress me in pretty, new outfits every morning, then put gold chains or pearls around my neck, informing me, "If you look nice, then no one will know that I have to punish you for being a dirty kike. It will remain our secret, Isabella."  
Then he would bend over my small form, and quickly reach down to firmly swat my ass, before reminding me not to be a whore, like my mother, as I walked out the door to go to preschool. Looking nice was seriously some kind of a necessity. I had all kinds of pretty dresses and shoes, but no money and no toys and no possessions that were mine. This money seemed to be a huge fortune for me. Bobby and I talked for days and days about how rich we were and all the possibilities of our newfound wealth. I knew that I couldn't spend mine because Jim would take away whatever I bought.  
"Maybe we should bury the money in a jar in the backyard," Bobby suggested. "It could be our escape money if we want to run away."  
That is exactly what we did. Digging deep into the dark dirt, we put our treasure of fourteen dollars under the lemon tree and told no one. It was our secret._

**Is it still there?** Marie asked.

_Fuck, I don't know…_

**Nooo…** Isabella's voice trailed off and I puzzled over as to what she could mean by that.

I know that I never dug up that money.

**See? Bad. Fuckin. Kid.** Marie reaffirmed.

_Isabella, did you take that money?_ I asked.

She was silent but eventually insisted, **It was mine.**

_No…it wasn't_ I told her.

**Yes…it was** she said, mocking my tone.

_You little brat! That was Bobby's_ I mentally yelled at her.

**Fuck him! That shit was mine** she insisted.

I sighed and ignored her, effectively ending our internal chatter.

_I felt like my heart would break when kindergarten came to an end. I cried for days because I wouldn't get to see Mr. McDonald anymore. Cutting, and gluing had been fun…the music was wonderful, but Mr. McDonald had become my fantasy father. He spoke softly, he laughed and smiled a lot. He played with me and my classmates. He liked me. I humiliated myself once more before the last day of school let out, begging him to adopt me. I fantasized what it would be like to be his daughter and the fun that I would have under his care. More than anything, I craved affection. I wanted to be kissed and hugged and cuddled. I wished I could sit on Mr. McDonald's lap forever and bury my head in his soft neck. At my almost hysterical tears, Mr. McDonald sat me on his lap and looked at me with serious, thoughtful eyes as he waited for me to calm down.  
"There is nothing in this world that I would like better than to have you be my little girl. Unfortunately, it isn't that easy to take a child from someone else. The law says that you belong to the parents you were born to. Next to my own two little girls, I love you more than any other child. I have enjoyed everyday that you have been in my class, eager as ever to learn and play. I like watching your face light up with excitement at the prospect of learning new things. You are a fascinating, beautiful little girl, Bella, and I wish I could be your daddy," he said with a gentle smile, before his features hardened a bit. "But, it's just not possible. I cannot bring you home with me." His tone was one of finality now.  
All the way home, kicking a rock, I felt depression consume me in the most profound of ways. The concept of ownership had never even crossed my mind. My daddy didn't love me, or want me, but he **owned** me…like a dog, or a cat. There would never be an escape, or another daddy. I was exhausted to my core with the terrorizing, the physical pain, and the isolation of the basement. Mr. McDonald couldn't take me. Granny Hadassah couldn't save me. Mommy was gone all the time. It was hopeless. I picked at my food and didn't sleep at nights. My slight weight dropped even lower. I mentally drifted in and out of time frames. When Mommy came home from her latest business trip, she was alarmed at how I looked.  
"Sunshine, you're getting so skinny. You must try to eat, baby."  
"I don't like you," Isabella words, directed at my mother, whispered in my head.  
I brushed off my mother's suggestion and continued to suck my thumb. If she cared so much, she wouldn't leave me all the time._

**That's right** Isabella chimed in out of nowhere.

I continued as if I hadn't heard her.

_Summer meant the loss of new friends, and the loss of Mr. McDonald, but the gain of more violence against me. My increasing awareness that I had lost hours during the day came when I was six. I could be locked in the basement and be left down there for the entire day, and it would end up seeming like only minutes to me. Though I was not aware of any conscious effort to do so, I learned to escape from the intolerable. Bobby had eventually taught me how to hold and play with spiders, so that I wouldn't fear them in the basement anymore.  
"See? Spiders are nice. They only tickle when they walk on you," he assured me as we watched a tiny black spider crawl up my arm.  
He was always upset when I got locked up. I would hear him pleading with Daddy sometimes, for him to let me come out and play, before the eventual telltale sounds of repeated smacking occurred, alerting me to the fact that Bobby was getting punished because of me. No longer fearing the spiders helped, but the basement had a stench from all of the times that I had to urinate, when I was down there and couldn't hold it any longer. The blackness was absolute. There wasn't even a ray of light. No sounds. It was abandonment at it's worst. I was certain that I would die of thirst, or shrivel in hunger. I worried that Mommy would not know how I died. Often, I worried that no one would remember that I was down in the basement, and I would just be left to die. I wondered if bones really were white, like I had seen in pictures of skeletons and the scary movies that Jim had shown me. How long would it take for me to become just bones, and where would my skin go? I wondered if my skin would look like the potato I'd found at the back of the cupboard that was all shriveled. I wondered if I would get squishy like a rotten apple, or all hard and wrinkled like a dried potato. There were times when I felt sad for my own death, which in my mind seemed an inevitable certainty. Other times, I just apathetically accepted the fact that one day, soon, I would be left to die in the basement, or that Dad would kill me. I would lie on the floor of the basement and my fears and thirst would get drowned out by Isabella's voice talking to me, saying lovely, escapist, imaginative things. Isabella split into life, in my mind, suggesting that we have a tea party or play house. There was a giant pot of English tea, which we drank with milk and sugar out of thin, dainty teacups. Isabella liked number games. We giggled as we made up puzzles of numbers to add and subtract, knowing that Mr. McDonald would be proud of us and our new game._

_My panic always escalated when Bobby was gone. He was my one assurance that I would be found! Since he was a big kid…an eight year old, he was allowed to go places on his bike, and sometimes he left for the day. Whenever he could, he tried to take me with him because he knew what leaving me meant. I became the tag-along with Bobby and his friends. Bobby and I decided to make more money for our treasure jar. We opened a lemonade stand at the end of our driveway. Mom was pleased at our little enterprise and she said that she would buy all the sugar and paper cups that we needed. We had several lemon trees on our grounds, so we went into business right away. Some of the neighbors who stopped by were surprised to find out that children lived in our big house…especially a little girl, since they had never seen us before. We met the Jamisons, a Baptist family who lived four houses down. They had a ten-year old daughter, Susannah, who became our friend that summer. Isabella did not like this girl, but she chose to stay quiet on the matter, for the most part. Her dislike for other children was growing, though. Susannah would stand on the curb and flag down cars for our potential customers. Susannah was the one who introduced me to the full-blown concept of hell and damnation. I knew some about this placed called 'hell', from what Jim had told me, but nothing like what my new friend had shown me. Her parents took me and Bobby to a Holy Roller-type church service, where, with great vividness, the pastor described flames licking at the feet of the wicked and unrepentant. I didn't know what 'sins' were, but I knew from my dad that I was, indeed, evil. Now I had the added worry of hell when I finally did die in that damn basement. After the service, Susannah introduced me to the pastor, who asked me if I had been saved. My only answer was, "No," for my only idea of 'saved' was for someone to take me away from Jim.  
"We will pray for you, child," the scary man said, then he proceeded to put his large hand on my head and invoke the Holy Spirit to enter my heart. I was terrified, thinking that he was calling on some magical power to strike me down. I waited for Jim's angel to appear with a sword. When I didn't die, I was a bit relieved._

_I lived with a great deal of anxiety at being Jewish, being evil, and always being hurt. I never told anyone that I was Jewish. It was as black a secret in my mind as the abuse. I bit my nails, sucked on locks of my hair, and at six, I still sucked my thumb. Jim painted my thumb with Tabasco sauce, but I would wash it off when he wasn't looking and suck it anyway. I needed my thumb. I tried really hard to stop sucking it, but I couldn't.  
"Big kids don't suck their thumbs," Bobby said.  
"Pull that thumb out of your mouth," my mother demanded.  
But I needed my beloved thumb, and the reassurance I felt when I sucked on it. They could all kiss my Jewish ass, as far as I was concerned._

_Mom and Jim began fighting a great deal and there were times when Mom didn't come home at nights. Jim told Bobby and me that Mommy was having sex with other men. During mom's nightly absences, Jim began talking with his angel more frequently and getting more violent with me. He would strip me naked some nights, and tie me to the bedposts with those blue fucking scarves and begin rubbing my clitoris with a cold cream, making me feel all warm and nice. I would stare into his glazed blue eyes while he did this. He would stare back. My mind soon rejected those 'nice' feelings, becoming immediately confused that those feelings were being associated with Jim's mean hands. Then, things abruptly became clear and made sense all over again, when Jim took the handle of a wooden spoon and jabbed it into my anus, saying things like, "I'll have to teach you how to use that fuckable little ass."_

I had to take a minute to clear my throat, then. I had a sudden wave a of nausea hit me and I found myself wanting to vomit at that vivid memory.

Carlisle looked on with concern. "Take your time, dear…" he advised gently.

I swallowed and breathed in through my nose and out my mouth five times before I could speak again.

_Jim had me stand in standard position against the wall, while he paced in front of me, muttering nonsense to his angel. My standard position was simple. Back straight. Palms upturned and held out to him, as if in offering. Keep eyes forward. Don't. Make. Eye. Contact.  
"I have to be careful not to mark up your skin, because your dumb ass is in school now," Jim told me with accusing, cold blue eyes.  
Jim stopped pacing then, and bent down to yell in my face, "Do you have any fucking idea how hard that is going to be for me?" he asked with desperation laced in his voice.  
I whimpered and shook my head, whispering out a shy, "No."  
He slapped me across the face. Hard. He hadn't given me permission to speak.  
"Take your tight little ass down to the fucking basement before I get my belt, Isabella," he threatened.  
I bolted out of the room, heading straight for the dreaded door to the basement, opening it and slamming it closed behind me, becoming immediately enveloped in the familiar, but desolate darkness._

_Jim soon began to lock me in the basement right after breakfast, leaving the long needles that he had stuck deep in my foot to stay in place, immobilizing me while I was down there serving my time for my apparent wickedness. I was highly distraught at missing school sometimes, because of this. Jim would write a note, saying that I had been sick, or that I had had an asthma attack. I was very tiny and underweight, so Mr. McDonald accepted those excuses.  
One day, at recess, Mr. McDonald was pushing me and another one of my classmates, a little boy, on the swing set. I winced as he touched my bruised back.  
"What's the matter, Bella?" he asked as he stopped the motion of my swing when he noticed my cringe and slight whimper of pain. I didn't answer, so he slowly pulled up my shirt to the middle of my back and gave a little gasp.  
"Bella, how did you get all these black and blue marks?" he asked in my ear from his position behind me.  
I was frozen in mortification.  
"I can't tell you," was all I could whisper.  
Mercifully, he let it drop and gently slid my shirt back down into place. But he did say that if I ever needed to talk to him about it, he would be glad to help me.  
I shyly mumbled, "Thank you," but the imprint on my brain of the white-hot fire pain kept me silent._

"I wonder why he didn't just call the authorities right then and there? That very day..." Carlisle muttered curiously.

I glared at Mr. Squiggly Line and replied in a harsh tone, "Because he didn't fucking care."

I sighed then, and relaxed my sudden anger, while I contemplated taking this conversation down a different road. Carlisle knew about that evil bitch, 'Lady Angel', but he had no idea of the other beings Jim had conjured up to terrorize my childhood.

_Hmmm…_

**No…** Isabella pathetically whimpered.

**For the love of Christ…** Marie added, in an exasperated sigh.

I'll have to talk about it sooner, or later right?

Right.

Well, here goes nothing…

_Fritz and Frieda added stress to my life. From my earliest memories, they were part of my childhood experience, and as real to me as Jim's angel. Jim would sit at the edge of my bed while he had me tied to the bedposts and tell me over and over again, about Fritz and Frieda, the elves who lived in the big basement of our house, in their own tiny home behind the furnace. They were his German Heinselmenchen, which according to folklore, are the elves who come in the night to work and help people, but Jim had ownership of these elves.  
Apparently, he had 'ownership' over a lot of things…  
Anyways, they were malevolent, nasty little creatures with big eyes that watched me from their invisible hiding places and would tell Jim if I was doing anything wrong. They could hear me wherever I went and would always report even the slightest infraction of the rules to him. As a child, I could hear them breathing behind the curtains and hear their tiny footsteps following me. At vulnerable moments, when Mom was putting me to bed, I considered telling her about Jim, but I knew Fritz would scurry his crusty ass off to Jim, like a little bitch, on his tiny felt shoes, and I would be murdered before Mom could even pack a suitcase. Just as I tried to talk to 'Lady Angel', I used to try to negotiate with Fritz. I wanted him to know that I was trying very hard to be a good girl. Whenever I was lucky enough to be given candy or something special at school, I would save some for Fritz and Frieda, putting little stashes of things at the bottom of my bed, in an effort to win them over. When they didn't take my offerings, I thought it was because they were like Daddy, and didn't like dirty little kikes, either. Bobby was terrified of the elves, as well. We would sometimes agree to meet inside the closet and whisper to each other if we had important things to discuss, or we would simply print notes to each other about Dad. We decided that little elves can't read, or that if Fritz could, it would only be German, because that was the language that Jim spoke to him in._

"Interesting…" Carlisle murmured in a thoughtful tone.

"Isn't it, though?" I added in a sarcastic tone.

"Hmm…" he sighed.

"Yeah. That delusional motherfucker just didn't know when to quit, did he?" I asked with a smirk.

"Apparently not," Carlisle agreed.

And, after noticing that I still had twenty minutes left, I continued on, deciding to inform him a little more about mine and Isabella's history.

_It was clear in my mind, at age six, that Isabella was definitely my twin. She was no longer the free-form, pretend playmate from the basement. She was a distinct person, separate from me, with definite likes and dislikes. We had lengthy internal dialogues, even arguments. Our relationship was still one of friends, but her anger, and her willingness to do things that got me into trouble, was always upsetting. When I told people about Isabella, they either said that I was lying, or pretending. We had the awareness that we shared the same body, but not the same life. She was prettier than me. She refused to be Jewish. We began to have different favorite clothes, our own sets of ideas on how to do things, and individual preferences. I simply accepted my twin and my constant loss of time with the same willingness that I had accepted the abuse. It just simply was._

Carlisle didn't look up from his journal, but nodded for me to continue, so I moved onto the subject of my first ever summer break.

_The summer after kindergarten, Mom took time off from work and took us to the beach for a few weeks. Granny Hadassah came to stay with us, also. She stuffed me full of goodies, and in the joy of not being hurt and being away from the dark basement, I began to eat and play again. Mommy took us swimming. In the early morning hours, we went seashell hunting and walked along the edges of the waves, kicking at the clumps of seaweed that hid the treasured cowrie shells and abalone. At sunset, we fished off of the big rocks, with the surf surging and spraying us as it hit the rocks. We let our perch swim in the tide pools. Granny enthusiastically cooked the fish that we caught. I still got punished by Jim for small, dumb things, though. He would accuse me of something stupid, barely getting the explanation for my punishment out, before roughly grabbing my small arm and dragging me behind a high pile of rocks. He would spank me while I wore a wet, two-piece swim suit…the sounds of my cries going ignored by my mother, who stood twenty feet away. I didn't let Jim's daily punishments bring me down though. They only lasted a few minutes, after all. Granny told me stories…lotts of them being about wicked step-fathers and witches. She fingered the scars on my leg in an unconscious way while she told me about Hansel and Gretel. She never talked directly to me about the scars, but somehow I knew that she knew more than she could say. Bobby and I became very tan and toned in those weeks of fun. All of the sun, exercise and generous amounts of food and goodies did a number on my body. I was a lot healthier, and my mother was beaming in approval at the improvement in my physical appearance. I even stopped sucking my thumb in the daytime, although I still did it at night. Isabella was content and quiet. Bobby and I piled on top of Mom at night in a heap of laughter and wrestled on the floor. Granny Hadassah kissed and hugged us constantly. Bobby said that it was 'mushy', but I could tell that even he liked it. We playfully teased her because she didn't like the sand and worried about getting freckles from the sun. We would swim until we were cold, which was hours, then we would flop down onto the hot sand, roll around, and later build elaborate lopsided sand castles. Driving home, Bobby and I were suddenly very desolate. We discussed whether we should tell Mommy what was really happening at home. Again, I was the one who talked Bobby out of saying anything. My fear of retribution by our evil father was profound._

_In August, Mom rented a mountain cabin at Lake Arrowhead. With great anticipation, we all packed for our week-long adventure. The road seemed to endlessly twist as we made our way up the mountain. We stopped and looked out over the city and the blue mountains beyond. We arrived at the lake and drove around part of it, until we came to a private driveway. We bumped along on the dirt road and there, in the middle of the pine trees, was a beautiful two-story home; not at all the cabin that I had imagined. Inside, there were stuffed animal heads on the wall, a huge fireplace, and everywhere the glow of beautiful golden wood. Bobby and I slid around in our socks on the polished floors. For a couple of days, we had a great time fishing and hiking in the woods. Then, Mom called her office to check in, and I felt my heart stop mid-beat when she said that she had to go to Los Angeles to do a deposition on a case. I knew what her leaving always meant. Again, I clung to her, begging her to stay, the terror alive in my mind. Panic rose as I watched the car disappear in a cloud of dust. For a day, everything went well. We swam in the lake in front of the lifeguard, while Jim sat nearby and read a book. The evening of the next day, Bobby and I got rather wild and were wrestling on the floor, having both a tickle, and tackle fight. I accidentally bumped the table, which held the kerosene lantern. The lamp went crashing to the floor, spilling the burning kerosene in a trail of flames.  
Bobby and I panicked, and shouted, "Help! Daddy! Help! Fire!"  
Jim rushed into the room and beat the fire with a blanket and it eventually put out, but it had blistered the beautifully polished wood floor. Jim was livid at me. Not Bobby. Never his son, Bobby. He grabbed me and shook me so hard, that my teeth cracked together and I bit my tongue. I could taste the blood and feel the sharp pain. I don't remember the words Jim had yelled at me, but I acutely remember being dragged outside, waaaay out into the thicket of the trees. Jim took the rope that had tied our suitcases to the top of the car and slammed me against the trunk of a big tree.  
"Stand still," he commanded as he began tying the rope around the tree and my torso. I dared not move or cry out, fearing what would come next. It was twilight now and the woods seemed scary as the shadows made giant shapes of dark and light. Soon, Jim finished tying me. My arms were free, but my face was resting on the rough bark, and my body was pressed tightly to the tree. I only had shorts on, and it was hurting my legs. Jim was yelling and growling random curses and reprimands at me, as he began to beat me with a tree branch. I gasped with each stinging whack. I tried my best not to scream for fear of him hurting me worse.  
Instead of untying me when he was through, he threw the branch on the ground and walked up behind me. The heat from his body so close to mine made my new welts sting more.  
He said in a harsh tone, "You can spend the night tied to this goddamn tree to think about how fucking wicked you are, Isabella. If you cry out, or scream, you can bet your tight little ass that I'll know about it, and I'll come back out here to strip you naked."  
He brought his mouth down to the side of my face and licked the tears off of my left cheek with his slimy tongue.  
He spoke into my ear then, in a rough voice. "I'm being nice letting you keep your clothes on," he informed me…as if he were doing me some kind of favor.  
With that, he turned and left me tied so tightly to that damn tree, that I could barely breathe. My tongue hurt, my back stung from the beating, and my legs were getting poked by the little knots of the pine. Any normal child would have screamed and wailed. This cabin was far from any other cabin, up in it's own private road, but I still thought of shouting at the top of my lungs for help. From experience, I knew that I could not. I did not dare cry out. It was unthinkable. Jim would hear me. My sense of abandonment was the most intense I had ever experienced then, as the sun set and the trees turned from shadows into black, frightening shapes. I sobbed quietly, my nose running, the sniffles going down onto my little tank top. My heart beat fast and every sound in the woods got amplified a thousand times. I couldn't see or hear anyone in the cabin. I was alone - terrifyingly, frighteningly alone. The mosquitoes came out in full force as the night got blacker. Fortunately, I had my hands free to swat them as they honed in on me, but I couldn't bend over to protect my legs. I could actually feel myself turning into mosquito food. The pain, the trauma, and the length of time made me have to urinate badly. I held it as long as I could, until the half-moon rose above the trees. Finally, out of desperation and cramping, I just scrunched up my nose at what I was about to do, and wet myself. I concentrated on the feeling of the warm stream running down my legs and into my light-up flashy sneakers. The terror mounted in me as I began worrying that bears would smell my pee and come to eat me. I cried in my fright and my breathing was coming in fast gasps as I waited for the inevitable bear to come and swipe at me with a clawed paw. I heard thousands of noises and felt beetles walking on my skin. Every sound was ominous in the blackness, the trees looking huge and threatening in the pale moonlight. I got cold. Bone-chillingly, teeth-chatteringly cold. I was tiny and the elevation we were at was over five thousand feet. I was in pain. I was cold. I was terrified and forgotten.  
"I'm not gonna stay here," was my thought as Isabella sprang into life.  
"Let's leave," she suggested with a bright smile. "Tonight, we'll go to the moon."  
I nodded and concentrated on the friendly face of the moon above me. Isabella mounted Pete's dragon…from that movie, Pete's Dragon, and the two of us flew to the moon that night. We found a river of warm water and underground houses, all cozy and warm , inhabited by adorable moon kids, who played with us, and fed us Snickers candy bars with extra peanuts that were in the tiny bowls carved from green moon rocks. I know now that it was dissociating from reality, but as a child, it was downright survival. It was escape from the inescapable. I don't remember anymore of the night, but the next morning, when I was untied, I immediately crumpled to the ground. My legs just wouldn't work. I was numb with cold and immobility. Jim had to carry my to the cabin. I felt him kiss my forehead, before he gathered me up in his arms. I had my arms around his neck and could smell his soapy scent as he held me. I wanted to kiss his cheek, but I did not. It was enough to be held by him…if even for a moment._

After a moment of silence, Carlisle realized that I was done with my trip down memory lane, and spoke.

"So, we come back to the lingering feelings of loyalty towards Jim…" he said quietly.

"Yeah. I remember feeling abandoned that night, but then feeling the complete opposite in the morning. I felt saved…fucking rescued when he came back to get me. I had never been so happy to see that sick fucker in all my life," I told him.

Carlisle nodded in understanding.

"Oh yeah…and that kiss to my forehead?"

"Mm-hmm?"

I closed my eyes and revealed in a regretful tone, "It meant the world to me."

I opened my eyes just in time to see Carlisle's smirk. "It's all apart of the mental abuse, my dear. He knew what he was doing…with the occasional soft touch or smile…or that comforting embrace. Or the kiss to the forehead." He flipped through some pages, as he added, "You mentioned once that he actually hand-fed you when you appeared to be weak, and he brought a TV into your bedroom so that you could watch cartoons after he had left you down in the basement for an extended period of time without any sustenance."

Carlisle looked up from his book and into my eyes for confirmation.

I nodded.

"He was giving you mixed signals. That is quite obvious. He was truly the villain, but at times, would wear the mask of the hero. He would do this sporadically to keep you on your toes, and like you had said…to make you believe that maybe, if you did 'this', or acted 'that' way, then you might succeed in making him actually love you in return. It's used to cause a person a sense of constant failure and hopelessness. That was clearly his intention from the beginning," he informed me.

I shrugged. "Makes sense…" I mumbled.

**Edward, Edward…Edwaaaard** Isabella starting singing in my head.

Things started to blur slightly as she let me feel a wave of her possessiveness towards him a second later.

_Oh, no you don't…it's my turn_ I told her.

She giggled lightly, contrasting with Marie's dark chuckle that sounded at the same time.

**What about me? When is my fucking turn, Bell? It's pure fuckery, let me tell you...and it's just my goddamn luck, that we get sick, _then_ we start with this bleeding nonsense. Fucking. Ridiculous. _I_ want Edward. It's my fucking turn, goddamn it.**

_No. It's mine_ I insisted.

**My Edwaaaard…** Isabella continued to sing in a lilting, carefree manner, in the back round of my mind.

Things started to blur again and Carlisle's concerned voice began to fade in and out, becoming the least of my worries right now.

I sighed.

_Fucking hell. It's **my** body_ I reminded my alternates.

**It's my turn** Isabella insisted matter-of-factly.

**No, it's my fucking turn** Marie argued.

_Goddamn it. It's MY turn!_ I announced, getting frustrated.

**He's _mine_** Isabella's sudden harsh tone pierced through my mind space, almost echoing in her finality on the subject.

And that was the last sound I heard before everything went black.

Again.

* * *

A/N:

So...who's turn _is_ it?

Was this therapy session too intense for you?

Do you like our Edward 'as-is', or do you want him to lay off the spanks for a while?

LET ME KNOW!

I love all of your amazing and fuckawesome reviews, they make me smile :)

So press that button and give me your feedback. I crave it.


	38. Tattletales & Switcheroos

CPOV

Just as we were beginning to discuss Bella's displaced loyalty towards Jim, she started to show signs of going in and out of awareness. The occasional gasp for breath…uncontrollable blinking. I made sure to quickly write these symptoms down, but all too soon, one of my favorite girls made an appearance, smiling brightly at me.

"Well, howdy doo, doctor dad," she remarked with a playful smirk.

I loved her nickname for me. Doctor dad.

_Dad._

I smiled. "How are you today, Marie?"

She subtly shook her head and brought her feet up onto the chair with her. She twisted her body sideways, and lay her legs over the arm of the leather chair, so that her knees were a bit elevated, while her feet dangled off the side. Her back stay firmly in place, slouching slightly, against the high back of the chair and she rested her head against it.

"Not good, not good…" she murmured.

"Why's that, dear?"

"Because of all the fuckery that has gone down since I was last around," she told me, as if it should have been obvious.

I nodded and hummed in agreement. A lot had certainly happened yesterday, but I wanted to know which things, specifically, she found herself disagreeable with.

"Like what?" I asked curiously.

She started to subtly kick her feet out and lightly scratched at her wrist while she talked. "My Bell started that gross-weird-bleeding thing again, and our Edward almost bit us," she informed me.

I smiled reassuringly at her. "Marie, that 'gross-weird-bleeding thing' is perfectly normal and you should start to get used to it, dear, because it will happen to your body once a month. Now, if the five year old can handle it, surely you can?"

She shrugged and snatched up a long lock of her hair, then started to twirl it around her slim fingers distractedly. "Whatever…" she muttered, disinterested.

I nodded. "And, as far as Edward is concerned, the entire family was here when that happened last night. We all know that Bella was never in any real danger. He was just having a hard time confusing his lust with his bloodlust," I explained.

She nodded. "Oh, I know. My Bell's body is simply fucktabulous," she smirked and giggled, then added in an almost whisper, "we're ir-re-sis-ta-ble…" as amusement lit up her eyes.

"Yes, well, Edward certainly seems to think so," I told her conversationally.

She nodded and smiled brightly at me, knowing full well the effect that she had on my son. She let go of her hair then, and sat up, bringing her legs back in front of her to sit Indian style in the leather chair.

"Are we done?" she asked bluntly.

I smirked at her. "Do you _want_ to be done?"

She smirked back and raised her hands in the air, giving her back a little stretch. "Well, I sure as hell don't wanna _sit_ here all day, doc."

I nodded.

She brought her hands back to her lap and sighed out a long breath, before smiling sweetly at me. "I wanna go see my man-candy," she informed me with a nod of her own before cocking her head to the side, and asking curiously, "Where's he at?"

"Edward?" I asked, in clarification of this 'man-candy'.

"Duh."

I chuckled. "Oh…he's nearby," I informed her.

_On the other side of my door…as always._

Apparently, that was Edward's cue, because the door swung open then, and he came strolling in, walking right up behind Marie with an adoring smile on his face.

Yes. It was quite obvious that my son was in love with Marie, as well as Bella.

EPOV

"Hey baby," I said, sneaking up on Marie.

She turned around to look up at me with a bright smile on her face. She giggled, then brought her knees to her chest, before placing her palms on the arm rests of the chair and pushing herself up into a standing position.

"Hey, sexy," she retorted, smiling down at me.

I chuckled and held my arms out for her. "No standing on the furniture, love."

She twirled around a bit in that pretty red dress, avoiding my reaching hands with skill. "Why not?" she asked with a smirk.

I grabbed her by the waist then, smiling at her. "Because I said so," I said, keeping up a playful tone, despite the seriousness of my words.

I brought her small body against my chest and I smiled as she hugged onto my neck tightly. She began peppering my face with warm little kisses, repeating excitedly, "missed you, missed you, missed you."

I chuckled and when she finally reached my lips, I kissed her back. "I missed you too, sweetheart," I told her softly, then placed a kiss to her forehead, before setting her down on her feet.

She clung to my side, while I talked to Carlisle. There was still three minutes to spare, but he told me that Bella/Marie's session could be over now. He was going to go ahead and work a short shift at the hospital, before coming back here to get Esme for their extended hunting trip.

Carlisle started putting his leather bound book away and straightening up his desk as I looked down at Marie. She smiled up at me. I loved it when she was in a good mood. I gave her lips a chaste kiss and took her hand in mine, leading her out of the room.

We were on the stairs, heading back to our room, when Marie spoke up.

"Edward, what the fuck did I tell you about these frilly little dresses?" she asked, pulling the skirt of her dress out with a look of disdain on her face.

I kissed her temple. "I know, love, but Isabella doesn't mind them and you look so pretty…" I told her lightly, not wanting to bring up the 'cramp-factor', which was the real reason why I had put my little girl in a dress today.

"Yeah, but I don't like it. Can I change?" she asked as we entered the bedroom.

I nodded. "Sure, babe."

When she started for the closet, I added, "You might want to pick something that's a little loose-fitting…"

She poked her head out of the closet and looked at me with slight disbelief. "_Please_ Edward, I'm not the fucking five year old, alright? I can dress myself," she said indignantly.

I smirked at her attitude. I had missed it. "Of course…" I said in a light tone.

She turned her attention back to the closet then, and quickly picked out a pair of light blue jeans and a white tank top, before heading over to the bathroom to change.

I knew the cramps weren't bothering her right now because of the medicine I had given her, but I knew they would return, and when they did, she would regret ever wanting to put something on that had a waistband. I would let her find that out for herself, though. She, like Isabella, needed to come to terms with what was happening to their body, and just accept it. And how can they do that unless they experience it for themselves? So, when she begins complaining about a 'hurt tummy', I would just simply hand her back the pretty red dress that I had originally chosen for her. And then, she would never question me again, because she would know, that I know what's best.

Always.

When she came out of the bathroom, looking adorable in simple jeans and tank top, she was wiping the back of her hand across her face, trying to keep her long hair out of her eyes. After a second, she huffed and brought both hands up, then swept the long locks behind her ears.

She sighed then smiled shyly at me, "Edward, my dolly?"

I glanced over to the doll in the play basinet on the floor. "What about her, baby girl?" I asked Isabella.

She walked over to the bed and climbed on. "Gimme her…I gotta get her all dressed, like me," she told me.

I grabbed the doll and the small accessories bag, then tossed them to my little girl, where she sat on the bed.

Isabella gasped. "You're not sposta throw babies, Edward!" she yelled at me, then immediately grabbed her doll, cradling it to her chest with a worried look on her face.

_Ooops._

I bit my lip and shrugged, trying not to smile at her adorable display.

"Sorry, baby," I told her softly, trying my best to sound remorseful.

About lightly tossing a fucking plastic doll onto the bed.

_Christ._

She nodded and carefully placed the doll on the bed in front of her. "Is she hurt?" Isabella asked me hesitantly with concerned eyes.

I sat beside her on the bed, and picked the doll up, making sure to handle it with extra fucking care this time. I even put my ear to it chest, for show, before I smiled reassuringly at Isabella and said, "No...Haley's just fine, baby."

She let out the breath that she had been holding in a relieved manner. "Kay," she said lightly, then begun digging in the doll's accessory bag for a different pair of clothes.

I kissed her forehead. "I need to go downstairs and start on your lunch, pretty girl. What do you want to eat?"

She looked up from her task and smiled brightly at me. "Grilled cheese!"

"Grilled cheese?" I asked softly with a small smile.

She nodded. "Uh-huh, yeah…it's yummy," she informed me, then concentrated on undressing her doll.

I whispered to Esme at our frequency then. "How do I make a 'grilled cheese'?" I asked her, perplexed, because I really had no idea what the damn things were.

I had never seen my Bella eat 'grilled cheese' before. I pictured a glob of gooey cheese in my head, and prayed that that wasn't what Isabella was referring to. I would never let her eat that.

Esme laughed a little, then assured me that she would take care of it. She walked into the kitchen then, and began the task of making my girl her…um, 'grilled cheese'. When I saw, through her mind's eye, that she had grabbed a slice of cheese and two pieces of bread, I was instantly relieved to know that it was apparently some kind of sandwich.

Sandwiches were good…healthy. Globs of cheese…not so much.

I figured I'd help Esme in the kitchen, and learn some more about this cooking crap, since she would be gone for the next two days, and I would be in charge of my girl's meals again. So, with one more kiss to my angel's forehead, I left her to her doll and joined my mother in the kitchen.

I kept my ear on Isabella's heart beat as we worked in silence, gracefully moving around each other in the large kitchen. Esme cooked the sandwich and I cut up a small pear and put a few Pringles chips on a plate for Isabella's lunch.

I concentrated and watched as Esme flipped the odd sandwich in a frying pan a few times, noticing how the bread was turning a golden brown color. She informed me that when the bread turns that color, then that means that the cheese in the middle is sufficiently melted and the sandwich is done. I nodded, knowing that I could definitely prepare a 'grilled cheese' for my girl in the future, if she ever wanted one again. I could master this sandwich making thing. No problem.

"Fuckin doll," I heard Isabella…or Marie mutter quietly from our bedroom, right before music started coming through my state of the art speakers. I heard Marie start to sing along with Bow Wow's 'Let Me Hold You'. If Marie hadn't started singing along, I would have thought that it was still Isabella playing around up there, because it seems that all three of my girls like rap music…along with rock, but I can tell their voice pitches apart. It was definitely Marie up there right now.

I went upstairs to get her and bring her back down for lunch. I started to call her name when I was half way up the steps, but she didn't respond, so I tried again once I had reached our bedroom door.

"Marie!" I yelled over the loud music.

She was jumping around on the bed and when she saw me, she quickly flashed me a smile, before she went back to singing along with her song, effectively ignoring me.

I saw Isabella's half-dressed doll on the hardwood floor, the baby doll clothes strewn everywhere, all over the bed, accessory bag up by the pillows.

Marie just kept bouncing around, making a bigger mess with Isabella's toys.

"…in my arms, in my mind, all the time, I'm gonna, keep you right, by my side, till I die, I'm gonna, hold you down and make sure everything is right witchyou, you can never go wrong if you, let me hold you, down like a real friend-"

"Marie!"

She stopped singing then and twisted her body in a jump, mid-air, so that she was facing me now. "What?"

I walked over to the stereo and shut the music off.

"Hey!" she said in a protest and stopped jumping completely.

As much as I loved her singing, I was glad the music was off now. I wouldn't have to yell.

"Your lunch is ready, hun," I informed her.

She shrugged. "Kay-" she started, but I cut her off.

"You need to pick up Isabella's toys and put them back where they belong," I told her firmly, and then eyed the half-naked baby doll on the floor pointedly.

Marie got off the bed then, with a roll of her eyes. "She can clean up her own fucking mess," she said dismissively in a curt tone, then began walking towards the bedroom door.

I held out my left arm, effectively blocking her path, then wrapped it around her shoulder, and turned her back around to face the mess. "No. _You_ can clean it up."

She huffed and stomped her foot. "Why?" she whined.

It was my turn to roll my eyes. "Because I know from the half-naked doll on the floor, that you came back as Isabella was trying to dress her doll for the day, so that means that I also know that all of this is _your_ mess. Don't you try to pin this on my little girl, I know that Isabella would never throw her doll down on the floor. She practically had a heart attack when I tossed it to her onto the bed," I informed her, to which she gave a small giggle.

"Yeah, I saw that shit," she muttered before I cut her off again.

"So _you_ clean it up," I insisted.

She sulked away from me then, dragging her feet towards the doll, muttering things like "stupid fuckin kiddie toys" and "don't wanna clean up after the brat", while she cleaned up the doll clothes mess. After she tossed the doll in the small basinet on the floor , she stuffed everything back into the small accessory bag, and placed it next to the doll. When she returned back to my side, I pulled her into a hug and kissed her temple.

"Good girl," I murmured, breathing in the scent of her hair.

She smiled up at me, then turned and walked out the door, her growling stomach alerting me to her hunger. She was obviously eager to eat the lunch that Esme and I had prepared for her.

I followed after her, and kept my keen eyes on her feet as she walked down the stairs, mentally calculating where each step would land. I didn't want her to fall.

I was always so worried that she was going to trip and fall down these steps. No matter what I did, that particular scenario never left my mind, leaving me to constantly fret about it each and every single time she casually walked down the stairs.

It was easier with Isabella. I could just pick her up and hold her to me like a child, but with Marie…she didn't seem to want to be held like that, unless she was upset about something and needed me to pace the floors with her in my arms.

So I was left to simply watch and be on my guard, ready to just reach out for her at the slightest little sign of her frail body tripping and falling down the stairs to her death.

When we were in the dining room, Esme placed Marie's plate in front of her, just as she was sitting down.

"Thanks, Ma - you're the best," she muttered, right before she took a big bite of that grilled cheese creation.

Esme's entire face lit up at the compliment, and the fact that Marie called her 'Ma'. It didn't escape either of my parents' notice, that Marie was the only one that seemed to refer to them as actual parental figures. Her nicknames for Carlisle are 'Doc' and 'Doctor Dad', and she chooses to refer to Esme as a mother, having actually called her 'Mom' and 'Ma'.

Needless to say, they are very pleased about this, because it reveals the fact that there is some part of Bella that reveres Carlisle and Esme as her actual parents. And, because they love my girl like a daughter, they couldn't be happier about that.

"You're welcome, dear. Would you like anything else?"

Marie nodded and swallowed. "A fuckawesome swirly straw," she said and picked up a chip, crunching it in her mouth.

"Of course," Esme agreed, and went off to the kitchen to fetch my girl a straw.

While Marie ate her lunch, I sat and watched her, thinking about what we were going to do today. Esme came back and placed a plastic straw in my girl's cup of cherry pepsi, then left the room to go back to work on the remodeling plans for the spare room. We would be making it into a gym within the next couple of days.

It seemed that my girls were already beginning to play the old switcheroo with me today, so I couldn't expect any of them to be out for any certain amount of time today, because they could switch it up on me at any given moment.

"Edward?"

Like now, for instance.

"Yes baby?"

"Can I play outside?" Isabella asked.

"We'll see, angel," I told her, not wanting to give her a definite answer, because I knew that there was storm in the forecast for today.

I pointed to a small slice of pear on her plate, indicating that I wanted her to finish her fruit before she filled up on chips.

She picked up the pear piece between her small fingers and closely examined it before asking, "What is it?" making sure to enunciate all of her T's, as usual.

"It's a pear," I informed her gently.

"Is it yummy?" she asked curiously.

I nodded, knowing that my Bella liked pears, but then I cut my nod short, suddenly remembering that while my Bella likes tomatoes, my baby Isabella absolutely despises them.

_Uhmm…_

"Try it," I suggested with a shrug.

_Please like it, please like it, please like it…_

She had to like it, unless she wanted to have a banana for her fruit instead. Isabella had already devoured all of the apples, we were out of them. I'd have to pick her up some more soon.

She scrunched up her nose in the most adorable way and hesitantly brought the tip of the pear slice to her lips, taking a little nibble. After a second, she smiled at me and took a bigger bite, letting me know that she liked pears, just like my Bella.

I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

"Marie was mean to my baby dolly Haley," she informed me matter-of-factly.

I nodded. "I know."

"She in trouble?" she asked curiously with a hint of mirth in her eyes.

I gazed at her curiously. "Do you want her to be in trouble?"

Isabella nodded.

"Well, she's not," I told her.

Her face fell then. "Why?" she huffed.

"I made her clean up the mess and put your dolly away, Isabella," I informed her.

"But she was mean-" she insisted before I cut her off.

"No."

I squinted my eyes at her, wondering why she was so dead-set on getting Marie into trouble. "Isabella, that's enough. You need to stop worrying about why Marie didn't get a spanking, and start worrying about _yourself_ getting one, because that's what'll happen if you keep arguing with me on the matter, young lady," I told her in a firm tone.

She gritted her teeth and scowled at me. She was clenching her fists and screaming in the back of her throat, notifying me of an obvious development to a temper tantrum.

"Stop it."

The scream in the back of her throat turned into a keening whine and her fists relaxed as she kept up our eye contact. I noticed that her eyes were beginning to water.

She kicked out her legs a bit, in an agitated gesture, lightly hitting my right shin in the process.

"Isabella," I warned.

She was clearly trying to calm her anger, but was having some obvious trouble with it. I could always bust her ass for some motivation, but I really didn't want to. I wanted her to calm herself. On her own.

A minute later, she was deduced to slightly angry sniffles, and the previous threat of a temper tantrum was gone.

"It's not fair," she insisted with a pout.

"What's not, baby?" I asked in a calmer voice.

"B'cuz she can mess up my toys, but I can't touch her stuff," she told me in an indignant tone.

I nodded, seeing the unfairness of it all. Marie is very possessive of her things, and it seems that she hasn't learned the concept of 'sharing' yet. It is most certainly _not_ fair that Marie threw Isabella's doll on the floor and scattered it's clothes around, while at the same time, she insists that nobody is allowed to touch her things.

"I know, baby girl," I assured her, letting her know that I agreed with her.

"So then, how come she's not in trouble?" Isabella asked curiously and sniffled again.

"Because she did as she was told and cleaned up the mess, then put your toys away. But, from now on, angel, if you don't want Marie to touch your toys, then you need to let me know, so that if I catch her doing it again, I can make sure she faces the consequences for it."

Isabella nodded.

"Alright?"

"Kay…" she mumbled.

"So…is there something you want to tell me?" I asked in a suggestive tone.

She looked back into my eyes. "I don't want Marie to touch _my_ toys."

I smiled reassuringly at her. "Ok then, baby. She won't. And if she does, she'll get in trouble."

She nodded. "Kay. I'm full," she told me.

I peered down at her plate and blew out a slow breath. Three pear slices, four chips, and half a sandwich still remained.

_Hmmm…_

"Try to eat the rest of your sandwich baby," I told her, feeling worried about why she always becomes full after so little food consumption.

This had been happening a lot the past couple of days.

_It's not normal._

She shook her head.

I nodded mine.

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"I wanna go play outside."

"Finish your sandwich," I repeated.

"No."

"Yes."

"Huh-uh," she breathed out with another shake of her head.

"Yes, Isabella."

"Nooooo…" she whined.

I gave her my 'stern face' and said in a hard voice, "Stop. Whining."

She smiled, switching tactics, and said brightly, "I'm full, let's go play outside."

I sighed and softened my gaze then. "I think you can finish that small sandwich, Isabella," I insisted.

"Nope, I can't."

"Yes, you can."

"No."

"Yes."

She picked up a chip then, and crunched it into her mouth. "Edward, these are some motherfuckin yummy chips," Marie remarked with a smile.

I smiled back, relieved that Marie was around now and seemed more than willing to continue eating.

"Are they?" I asked softly.

"Down right, goddamn delicious," she assured me, sticking the last chip in her mouth.

I nodded. "I'm glad."

Then something occurred to me.

"Marie, are you still hungry?" I hedged, hoping that I had the wrong idea of Isabella lying about being full, just so she could go play outside.

Marie nodded, and then realization seemed to dawn on her. She smirked. "Yeah, don't believe the tricky little brat, Edward. I'm fucking starving," she said, then grabbed for the other half of her sandwich.

I sighed. "Thought so…" I murmured.

_Well, damn._

Looks like Isabella needs another lesson on why lying is wrong.

I sat in silence while Marie finished eating, contemplating on how, exactly, I was going to handle Isabella.

The idea of anything or anyone depriving my Bella's body of food was infuriating me. I knew that I couldn't look at it like that though. That may have been the effect of her little lie, but that's not what her intentions were when she lied. She just wanted to hurry so that she could go play outside…the sooner, the better, so to speak. She wasn't thinking 'let's starve so we can play'…no, she has a child's mind. She was thinking with a child's train of thoughts. And what's the most important thing to a child? Fun. Play. Toys.

Not pear slices.

"Hey, Marie?" Emmett called from the other room.

Marie swallowed her drink. "Sup!"

"Come in here when you're done so I can beat you in some Guitar Hero…" he trailed off suggestively.

She rolled her eyes and grinned. "I think you're the one who's gonna get his ass handed to him. You're on!" she challenged.

His booming laughter trailed into the dining room, where we were seated, and Marie started munching on the remaining pear slices at an excited, hurried pace.

I, however, kept my train of thoughts on Isabella. And her lie.

When Marie was finished with her lunch, she went into the living room at Emmett's request, and I took care of her dishes. After I washed and dried her plate and cup, I joined my family in the living room, where Emmett and Marie were battling it out in Guitar Hero on the PS3.

After one 'practice round', Emmett paused the game and nudged her shoulder lightly as he asked, "Ready to get schooled by the beast, Marie?"

She smirked up at him and shot back, "Don't let your mouth get you into somethin your ass can't handle."

He smiled down adoringly at the girl he viewed as his 'kid sister', and Rosalie caught the look. She rolled her eyes from her position on the couch, and I growled quietly to her in warning. She had no reason to be jealous of my girl. She should be happy that Emmett is making an effort to accept Bella's alternates into the family.

_Stupid blonde._

Emmett ignored what was going on behind him with me and his woman, and pressed the buttons to begin the game.

After a couple of songs, they were laughing and humming along to the tunes together as they frantically tried to press the buttons on their respective guitars to hit the notes correctly. I decided that Marie looked comfortable playing the game with my brother, so I figured that now would be a good time to try out that whole 'letting my family help' thing.

This was a great opportunity in testing my ability to be away from my mate while she interacts with others in the house. I know that this is not a scenario that is stressful, requiring me to walk away, yet, but I can still practice that whole 'walking away' bit. So after the fourth song, I gave Marie a kiss to her forehead and assured her that I would be up in our room if she needed me.

She giggled at something that Emmett had said and turned her attention back to me, giving me a warm peck to my lips. "Later, babe," she said casually with a beautiful smile.

I smiled back and nodded before making my way up the stairs to our room. Alone.

I took calming breaths and focused in on my mate's heart beat as I occupied myself upstairs. I prepared another pair of panties with a small pad, knowing that it was just about time for her to change into another clean set. The panties were white with powder blue trim, this time.

I set them on top of the dresser and went into the bathroom, intent on gathering up the other two pairs of discarded panties from earlier, but when I saw them, I couldn't help myself from chuckling softly.

_Poor Isabella…_

I really needed to explain this whole process a little better.

They were laying, crumpled into a ball on the floor next to the trash can…the used pads, apparently, still attached.

I shook my head, and quickly removed the old pads, discarding them into the trash, then throwing the panties into the hamper inside the closet.

I walked into the spare bedroom then, which happened to be next to ours and started to try and envision where the different sets of gym equipment would go. I saw what Esme had planned in her mind, and it all looked fairly do-able. I was trying to decide which spot on the ceiling we should hang the punching bag from, when I heard Isabella call out my name from downstairs.

I sighed.

_Show time._

I sensed her spike in adrenaline almost immediately after hearing her calling for me, so I let paranoia take over and raced downstairs to get to her and see what the problem was.

"Hey…it's okay," Emmett said in his calmest and softest voice.

"Ed-ward…" she half-whimpered, half-cried.

_She's crying now?_

I appeared in front of them a split second later. Their toy guitars lay on the floor beside them, completely forgotten. Emmett had a gentle, reassuring smile on his face, but it didn't seem to be helping matters any. Isabella was staring up at Emmett with wide, fearful eyes that continued to glisten with unshed tears. The sight spiked my anxiety, but she hadn't seen me yet.

"Don't be scared…" Emmett softly pleaded and took a hesitant step toward her.

She immediately gasped, noticing his movement, and took a huge step back, then cried for me again. "Ed-ward," she said a bit louder and sniffled.

I couldn't watch anymore. I had to step in.

"Isabella," I said her name softly, getting her attention.

Her watery chocolate eyes immediately flashed over to mine, and I reached out for her. "C'mere, baby…"

She made it a point to keep a wide girth in between herself and the huge male in front of her, while she walked around him to get to me.

I picked her up and crushed her to my chest, shushing her quiet cries while she buried her face in my neck. She wasn't sobbing…barely whimpering, really. She was just sniffling and gasping for breath occasionally.

What I didn't understand, was why she was scared of Emmett now, when she had seemed to be fine around him before.

"Hey," I said softly and nudged her cheek where it lay on my shoulder.

She lifted her head and looked me in the eyes. She had stopped crying.

I furrowed my brow slightly in confusion. "Why are you scared of Emmett, baby girl? He won't hurt you," I told her in a quiet voice that was just between us.

She gave me a delicate shrug and blushed. "You weren't there…" she said quietly, matching my tone.

She turned to Emmett then, and surprised us all by giving him a shy smile.

He smiled back and gave her a little wave.

She giggled and blushed.

I nodded in understanding. So, Isabella was fine around other males in my family, as long as I'm there with her. Fair enough. In fact, I _prefer_ to be there. Always.

"Can I have a lolly?" she asked me, her tone child-like and normal, now that she was tear-free and back in my arms.

I shook my head, remembering her lie. "We need to talk," I said a bit firmly, and headed back for the stairs.

She gazed at me curiously. "'Bout what?" she asked lightly.

I gave her a pointed look, that clearly said 'you know what', and at that, she immediately began to cry.

Yeah. She knew what she did. She also knew what happened the last time she lied to me.

I sighed and tried to block out the wretched noises as we ascended the many stairs back to our bedroom at a human pace.

She tried to free herself from my arms, pushing against my chest and kicking her legs out, to which I only swatted her ass and tightened my grip on her.

She told me that she was sorry in a really small, _really_ pitiful voice.

She dug her forehead into my shoulder and sobbed, effectively soaking the fabric of my shirt with her clear snot and salty tears.

I kept a blank expression on my face and stayed quiet throughout her display, until we reached our room, where I gently placed Isabella on the bed and gave her a quiet, but strict order to 'stay'.

I didn't need her trying to run off, causing herself to be in even more trouble. In my opinion, I was keeping this punishment light, but if she tried to take off downstairs, or even hide underneath the bed, it would only anger me more. And that wouldn't be good for Isabella.

Not good at all.

I took calming breaths as I walked towards the closet and noted that Jasper was here in the house to help me, but I knew I wouldn't need him for this. After I took off my shirt and changed into another one, black this time, I made my way back over to the bed, where Isabella still sat, crying and wiping at her eyes with small fists.

She hadn't moved and that was a good thing.

_Good girl._

I sat on the edge of the bed and ground my teeth at the sounds of her cries. I hated it. It made me anxious and I knew that I would be in this emotional state until those horrible noises stopped, regardless of Jasper's help.

"Stand up, Isabella," I told her in a firm voice.

She jumped slightly at my tone, and crawled off the bed, then stood by the edge of it, sniffling and awaiting what was to come.

"Come here," I gave my next order.

She hesitantly walked over to me and when she got within arm's length, I reached for her with both of my hands and grabbed her small hips, then pulled her the rest of the way to me. Her slow pace had been irritating me.

She stood in front of me, in between my legs now, and we were face to face.

I could smell her sweet adrenaline as it coursed through her veins. I could smell her salty tears, as they streamed down her rosy cheeks. She took to sucking on her lips, then…top then bottom, bottom then top.

She took the occasional gasp for breath, trying to calm her little sobs. We stared into each other's eyes. She knew what I was waiting for, what I wanted. She was trying her best to give it to me.

I needed her to calm down, and stop crying, so we could talk.

When I thought she was calm enough, I grabbed a tissue and gently wiped her face clean of all the wet mess. A second later, when I was done with that, I balled it up and handed it to her. I needed my hands free.

"Hold this," I said.

She reached out a timid hand and took it from me, balling it up in her own fist, and bringing her hand back down to her side.

I made my voice soft before I spoke, but kept the firm edge to it.

"Isabella?"

"Yeah?" her voice cracked.

"Did you lie to me?"

She nodded slowly and looked down.

My hand immediately shot out and I grabbed her chin, tilting her face back up to lock her eyes with mine again. I gave her a pointed look and raised my eyebrow, letting her know that I wanted an actual fucking answer. None of this nodding crap.

"Yeah," she whispered.

I let go of her chin then and placed my hand back on my lap.

"Why did you lie to me?"

She sniffled. "B'cuz I wanted to go play and lunch was takin a long tiiime," she supplied.

I nodded, glad that my suspicions were confirmed. She just wanted to play, not to starve my Bella.

"Well, you won't be playing outside today, angel," I informed her.

I didn't need to tell her that it was more about the impending bad weather, than her behavior.

She whimpered at this apparent tragic news.

"Because what happens when you lie?" I asked, keeping the same firmly soft tone.

She sniffled and squeaked out a small cry before she finally answered in a shaky voice, "Get in trouble…"

I nodded and she showed me her pleading, watery eyes. I looked away before they could suck me in. I focused on hardening my resolve for a second while staring at the wall just above her thin shoulder. Three seconds later, my eyes shifted back to her chocolate ones, and I swallowed back some venom that was caused by the scent of her enticing adrenaline, before I went ahead and voiced my next question.

"Can you count to five, baby girl?" I asked softly.

She sniffled and furrowed her brow in confusion before she finally nodded. I gave her that same hard look.

She immediately caught herself mid-nod and said, "Yes."

"Show me," I prodded gently.

"1...2...3..._*sniffle*_...4...5," she recited in her small voice.

"Good," I said quietly.

She nodded.

"Because you are going to count for me. Start now," I said as I quickly reached behind her small form and firmly swatted her ass.

"Owwie!" she yelled in my face, because we were…well, face to face.

I cocked my head slightly to the side and gave her a pointed glare. "What?"

I sob tore through her throat as understanding crossed her features. "One…" she mumbled and clenched her eyes shut to clear her eyes of the tears that had been gathering there.

I spanked her again.

Her eyes shot back open and she yelled out, "Two!" an entire octave higher then before.

I spanked her again.

The force of it caused her to step a little closer to me, in between my legs. She cried and stared into my eyes, wiping at hers with tiny fists.

I spanked her again.

Her hands shot out to brace themselves on my shoulders. Her cries got louder, but she still hadn't said her number.

"Naughty girl, did you forget how to count?" I admonished her and spanked her again.

She shook her head quickly, and cried out, "Three…" as another sob tore through her throat.

"We would have been done by now, but you didn't _listen_, Isabella. The fact that you didn't listen means that you will get two more, because you weren't paying attention and lost count," I scolded her.

I was mad at her because she hadn't been paying attention to the simple task, causing me to have to smack her more times then I had intended, and I was mad at myself for coming up with this little fucking charade in the first place. I should have just draped her over my lap and done the damn counting myself, but I knew she would remember this, and counting would keep her mind focused on why she was being punished.

I spanked her again.

"Four," she sobbed out and kept our eye contact as she mumbled, "I'll be a good girl..."

"I know," I said softly, then delivered the sharp and final blow.

"Fiiive!" she screamed, and even went up on her tippy toes a bit on that one.

I placed my hand back on my lap then, silently letting her know that the spanking was over.

She continued to cry for a minute and I let her, knowing from Alice's advice, that 'sometimes girls just need to cry it out'.

_Whatever._

I placed a cool kiss to her warm forehead, before removing her small, fisted hands from both of my shoulders and placing a gentle kiss to each smooth palm. I stared at her for a second, before giving a very pointed, and deliberate nod towards the corner beside the computer desk.

She turned away from me then, with a pitifully defeated look on her face, and slowly made her way over to the corner to serve her time out.

While she rested her overheated forehead on the cool wall, I grabbed another tissue and silently brought it over to her. I stood next to her, waiting to be handed back the soiled tissue, while she blew her nose and wiped her eyes. When she placed it in my palm, I instructed the usual, "Eyes forward," and left her side to throw the tissue in the trash.

I kept an eye on the clock and began making the bed because it hadn't been made yet today. Too much had been happening since 6am this morning, and I just hadn't thought about the mundane task of making the bed. But now that I was looking at the casually tossed pillows, wrinkled sheets, and bunched up comforter, it brought that fact to my attention front and center. Isabella had slept in the bed and Marie had jumped on it. It needed to be made.

Three minutes later, I was placing the pillows back in their designated spots when my girl decided to speak up.

"Umm…Edward?" she mumbled quietly.

I smiled.

"Why am I staring at a wall?" she asked in an almost whisper.

I chuckled. "Because you're in trouble - err…_Isabella_ is in trouble," I informed Bella.

I saw her give a small nod, but she didn't make any move to leave Isabella's timeout corner.

I rolled my eyes. "Come _here_, my Bella," I ordered softly.

She turned around and gave me a small smile. I watched as her cheeks lit up with a beautiful blush and I couldn't resist holding my arms out to her. She giggled and gave me a bright smile, then ran into my arms. I picked her up and enveloped her small form in my arms, cradling her tightly against my body.

I breathed in the beautiful scent of her hair and started peppering the soft, warm skin on her beautiful face with small cool kisses, much like Marie had done to me earlier. I even added in the excited, "missed you, missed you, missed you's".

My ears delighted in her light giggling laughter and when I reached her sweet, warm mouth, I kissed her passionately. She graced me with her trademark move then, by gliding her wet, hot tongue along my bottom lip, causing a tingly feeling to erupt on the entire bottom half of my face, sparking it to life.

_I fucking love it when she does that._

I whispered a chuckle into her mouth, before setting her back down on her feet and palming her delectable little ass, giving it a small squeeze.

She hissed slightly in pain.

_Oh, right._

I kept my cool hands firmly in place on her ass, and kissed her forehead, murmuring quietly onto her soft skin, "I'm sorry baby, does it hurt?"

She nodded and placed her hands on my chest, then looked up at me in question.

I just shrugged. "I told you Isabella was in trouble," I offered as an explanation.

"Ohhh…" she said as she gave a small nod. "What'd she do?" she asked curiously in a quiet voice.

"Lied," I said simply, then started kissing those pretty pink lips again.

Bella reciprocated by pressing her warm lips to mine and letting her wondering little fingers find their way into the hair at the nape of my neck.

I moved my hands from her warm ass, down to the backs of her thighs and lifted her up then, never breaking our kiss. I brought her over to the bed and laid her down, while I spread her legs apart and hovered on top of her. I nestled my hips in between hers and I could feel her delicious heat pressed up against my belly.

I started to trail my kisses away from her lips to allow her some oxygen, then over her rosy left cheek, down her delicate jaw line, to her ear, where I sucked that adorable little lobe in between my lips and smiled at her little surprised gasp of pleasure.

I lifted my head and gazed into her chocolate depths, whispering to her how much I loved her. She gave me a beautiful smile and her expressive eyes sparkled as she told me that she loved me too.

I dipped my head back to the side of her face again and took that little lobe back in between my lips, before letting it go with a little _pop_ and skimming my lips down her throat, breathing in her heavenly scent and relishing in the burn of my throat.

It hurt so good.

"Turn your head to the side, Bella," I whispered in her ear and watched, fascinated, as goose bumps erupted all along the skin of her neck that I was about to mark as my own.

She did as she was told and my mouth wasted no time in attaching itself to the side of her throat. The second my tongue snaked out to wet the surface for me, she let out a breathy moan and gave me the magic word.

"Please…"

_Please._

Fuck.

_Say it. Again._

I bucked my hips into her moist heat and began sucking on her warm flesh a little harder, bringing the little sliver of skin in between my lips and always being careful of my venom coated teeth. I could feel her blood quickly rising to the surface on the piece of skin that I was marking, and it caused me to groan in satisfaction.

I had marked her.

She was _mine_.

Bella's hips started to gyrate against my rock hard erection on their own, then. I lifted my face from her throat, now that my mark had been made, and reached out a quick hand to place on the side of her hip and still her movements.

I looked down at her face with an adoring smile and chuckled when I saw her bottom lip slightly jutted out in a pout.

"Naughty girl, no pouting," I whispered to her with a smile and proceeded to kiss her pout away.

She moaned into my mouth and gave my bottom lip a little nibble, before I reluctantly pulled away.

I smirked. She _really_ likes my bottom lip. Well, I like hers too.

"I want more," she whispered to me with pleading eyes.

I subtly shook my head. "My Bella…so greedy," I playfully admonished her in a quiet voice.

"Greedy for you," she insisted and ground her hips up toward mine again.

I tightened my hold on her left hip in warning. "Mm-mm, Bella stop it," I murmured softly, breathing my cool, venom-tainted breath onto her flushed face.

I wanted to taste her. So fucking badly. But I couldn't. Even if my Bella was comfortable with the concept of me sucking on her tasty little clit while she was menstruating, I can't do it, regardless. That heavenly spot on my Bella's perfection, that I need _so badly_ right now, is no doubt covered in dead blood at the moment. And I can't partake in dead blood. I'm a vampire.

She reached up and gripped my hair then, running her fingers through it and pulling it in some places. "I want you…" she whispered to me when we made eye contact again.

I cocked my head to the side, coming up with an idea, and murmured in a teasing tone, "What's the magic word, Bella?

She moaned and breathed out the word, "Please…" again.

_Oh, fuck yes._

I brought my lips back to hers and we started kissing again. I ground my hips into her heat, giving her some friction to work with, and I let her lick and nibble my bottom lip as much as she wanted, while I took to gently palming her beautifully perky breasts.

I tore my lips away from hers and gazed down at her chest, focusing on my new task at hand. I didn't want to ruin her shirt, or her bra, like I did last time, so I grasped the low neckline of the white tank top and brought it down to the underside of her breast, then moved the bra cup out of my way, exposing that dusty rose nipple to my eyes, once again.

_Hello, beautiful..._

I felt the emanating heat rise in my Bella's face and I knew then, that she was blushing while I took a second to just gaze down at the perfection of that one naked breast.

I lightly ran the pad of my cool thumb over her little peak and watched, completely enraptured, as her body reacted to me. Her moans became louder, and that perfect, suckable little nipple perked right up for me.

_Mine._

I flashed my eyes back up to my Bella's lustful gaze for a second and whispered, "Good girl," letting her know that I was happy with her responsiveness to me.

Before she could say anything back, I dipped my head down and took that perfect little bud in between my lips and began to suckle on it, ever so gently. She moaned louder for me, and I smiled.

I lifted my hips off of hers then, and brought my knees onto the bed, my mouth never leaving her warm skin. I pressed my cold, jean-clad thigh up against her jean-clad core, and when she began to hesitantly grind her moist heat against it, I lifted my head and looked into her eyes, giving her an encouraging nod.

At my nod, she realized that that was why I had put my thigh there…so that she could utilize it however she wanted, so she started going at a more steady rhythm, knowing that I wouldn't stop her.

I spent another minute sucking and licking that pretty little nipple…flicking it with my tongue occasionally, while my Bella went to town on my thigh, filling my ears with all kinds of delightful little gasps and moans of pleasure that I would remember and replay in my mind for years to come.

Eventually I ended up back by her throat, my tongue teasing the recently marked flesh, while I purred and whispered in her ear, igniting more goose bumps on her soft flesh and sending a tightening little shiver down her spine.

"Mmmm…my Bella, so _warm_," I whispered against the sensitive skin of her newly marked flesh.

I moved my mouth to hover over ear then, and I smiled at her gasp and heated whimper at the sound of my soft purr, directly in her ear.

"Edward…" she moaned.

"Who do you belong to, Bella?" I purred softly in her ear while intently eyeing my mark on her intoxicating neck.

"You," she declared.

"Mmm-hmmm…" I hummed in agreement, then attached my mouth back onto her neck, and proceeded to leave another mark, directly above the one I had already made on her.

She gasped then, and arched her back into my chest, moaning out my name in the most delicious way.

I groaned, knowing that my Bella had just cum for me, and wrapped my arm around her back, which was currently lifted off the bed. I held her to me as her body relaxed and her breathing slowed, always continuing with my lip's light sucking on that little sliver of skin. As soon as I felt the blood rise to the surface of her skin, I let it go and licked my lips, enjoying the taste of my Bella in my mouth. I lifted my head then, and gazed down at a relaxed, and dazed looking Bella.

I smiled at how beautiful my mate looked right now...with pouty, swollen lips, messy sex hair, two little bruises on her soft neck, and a boob hanging out.

_Perfect._

My mouth was drawn directly back to that perfect, pink little nipple, and after I kissed it goodbye, I gently covered my Bella's chest back up, replacing the bra cup and lifting her tank top's neckline back into place. Then I kissed her lips, her forehead, both of her rosy cheeks, and saved her adorable button nose for last.

She smiled up at me. "I love you…" she murmured to me in a sleepy voice.

I kept my face close to hers and nodded, effectively giving her an Eskimo kiss. "Love you too, beautiful."

I stopped hovering on top of her then, and moved to lay on my side beside her.

I wasn't sure if what I was about to bring up was appropriate post-orgasm conversation material, but I wasn't sure when I'd see her again, so I had to let her know that everything was going to be okay. No matter what.

I let my fingers explore and trail, and comb through her now-messy locks, then brushed some strands away from her face as I began talking. "I talk to Carlisle last night, love. I know the conversation you had with him."

Her eyes shot over to mine and I saw how my beautiful chocolate depths had immediately become clouded with worry and despair. Her heart rate even spiked. It broke my heart.

"Shhh…" I shushed her quietly and placed another cool kiss to that adorable little nose. It really was just too fucking cute for it's own good. "I know everything that you told him, baby, and it's _okay_. I promise," I assured her.

"O…kay," she said hesitantly.

I nodded. "And I know about the girl's tendencies now, and I'm glad that I know. It gives me an opportunity to be better prepared," I insisted.

She softened her gaze and nodded in agreement.

"And I'm going to work really hard on letting my guard down when it comes to you, and allowing my family to help me out more often, too," I told her.

I kissed her soft, pink lips again, then murmured against their warmth, "Okay, love?"

She nodded and breathed out a relieved sigh. "Yeah, okay," she said quickly and attached her lips to mine again.

I brought my hand into her hair then, and fisted some of those _mmmm_ smell so good locks in my hand, always loving the feeling of those silky strands bunched in between my fingers.

When she pulled away from the kiss for a breath, she said, "Fuck Edward, you're damn good at makin my pretty Bell cum."

I hummed in agreement, knowing damn well that I could make my Bella cum _whenever_ I want, _however_ I want. She was my mate, I could play her body like a finely tuned instrument.

"I'm so _wet_," Marie remarked in a seductive voice with a sexy smirk.

"I know," I replied without skipping a beat.

Her arousal permeated the air in our bedroom and I had been smelling it for the past half hour.

"I gotta _pee_," she told me in the same tone.

I chuckled and kissed her again, then pushed up off the mattress, grabbing her hand and bringing her with me. I brought her over to the dresser and grabbed the newly padded pair of panties I had prepared earlier, and handed them to her.

She looked at them with slight confusion, before realization seemed to dawn on her and she muttered, while giving me a sad look, "Oh, yeah…I'm fuckin bleeding."

I nodded slowly at her, returning her look with my sympathetic one.

I knew that it would be hard for her this week, having to adjust to a menstrual cycle. That is, if she even let herself come into awareness often. I didn't know if she would though, but just in case, I took it upon myself to hide all of my Bella's tampax pearl tampons. After hearing my Bella tell Carlisle, in that first therapy session, about how Marie used a tampon and forgot about it, there is no way I am risking that happening again. My Bella could get TSS and fucking die, all because her alternate didn't want to deal with the natural changes of her body.

I kissed her lips gently, then said in a soft tone, "Go change your panties, sweetheart."

She nodded, and turned around with heavy feet to shuffle her way towards the bathroom door, obviously hesitant about having to clean up a potential blood mess from her skin.

While she was in the bathroom, I began straightening the covers on the bed that I had just made. My Bella and I had, apparently, wrinkled them while we were fooling around.

I smiled at that thought and contemplated just leaving the wrinkles there...as a reminder, ya know? Then I realized how much of a fucking _girl_ I was being, and quickly straightened the damn covers out. In a manly kind of way.

When I heard my girl's light humming, I decided to go ahead and pick out a movie for Isabella to keep her occupied since she wasn't allowed to play outside today.

I furrowed my brow at the realization that I had actually grounded my five year old for the day, and I suddenly felt nervous as to whether or not she would be bored, stuck inside the house until tomorrow morning. My gaze traveled the room then, and my worry died out as I was reminded that she had lotts of toys and movies, along with tons of drawing and coloring material to keep her occupied.

I put her 'It Takes Two' movie, featuring the Olsen twins, in the dvd player and grabbed the remote. The bathroom door opened just as I was sitting down on the bed, getting ready to start the movie for her.

She walked up to me with a sad face, her soft lips wrapped around the thumb in her mouth.

I immediately reached for it. "Thumb, Isabella," I quietly admonished her, while simultaneously wondering what had gotten her so upset.

She turned her head away from me when she saw my hand going for her mouth.

I dropped my hand back down to my side and sighed.

_Difficult._

"Edward?" she mumbled around her thumb.

"Yes, baby girl?"

She popped her thumb out of her mouth then, and sniffled. She looked up at me with watery eyes, and I immediately became worried and went to her. I cupped her rosy cheeks in my hands and stared intently into her beautiful eyes.

"What is it?" I whispered.

"Pants are hurtin my tummy," she muttered, while softly running her little fingers along her lower abdomen.

I nodded, a bit relieved that that was _all_ that was causing her to be upset. I couldn't help my sense of smugness that I had been right all along about those jeans. I walked over to the dresser then, where I had folded and placed the little red dress from earlier, and grabbed it, then quickly handed the piece of clothing over to Isabella.

"Go change back into this, pretty girl," I instructed. "I'll set up the heating pad, and when you're done, you can cuddle up with me while you watch your movie. It's already in the dvd player, baby," I told her.

She nodded and took the dress from my hands, then turned back towards the bathroom.

I raced downstairs and grabbed the bottle of ibuprofen, took two pills out, grabbed a Hi-C juice box and a peanut butter cookie, then flew right back up the stairs, to set up the heating pad on the large bed and wait for Isabella to finish changing.

When Isabella came out, I pressed PLAY on the remote, effectively starting the 'It Takes Two' movie, and handed Isabella the small pills and her juice box. She took them without hesitation, remembering that they had made her feel better this morning. Then, I gave her the peanut butter cookie to munch on.

I knew that she had to take that medicine on a full stomach, in order to avoid any possible stomach bleeding ulcers from developing, but I wasn't exactly sure if what she had eaten for lunch was actually still _in_ her stomach, and I wasn't going to take any chances with my precious angel.

She was going to finish that damn cookie.

I kept my keen eyes focused intently on her progress with it, as she slowly nibbled on her peanut butter treat, while keeping her distracted gaze on the screen. When she finally took that last bite, and swallowed, I breathed a sigh of relief and had her lay down on the bed for a cuddle.

I laid down beside her and placed a pillow under her head, like last time, then set the heating pad's intensity to level two and let it work it's magic on her lower abdominals.

I lightly trailed my fingers along her arms and back, slowing my hands down into soothing, massaging, little circles when I reached the tense muscles of her lower back.

When I felt her body begin to relax, and saw her little thumb make it's way up to her mouth, I kissed her temple and started gently running my cool fingers through her long hair, until she was finally lulled to sleep for her afternoon nap.


	39. Mistakes & A Hidden Addiction

BPOV

I woke up to hushed whispers and the occasional soft growl. I furrowed my brow and opened my eyes to see the soft golden hues of the comforter that was surrounding me. I recognized the slight growl from earlier as Edward's, so I moved the covers away from my face and sat up slowly, wanting to see him and find out what was going on.

As soon as I made a move to sit up, Edward's eyes quickly flashed over to mine. At my worried, and I'm sure, bleary, stare, he smiled softly at me. I loved his trademark, crooked smile. It was my rock a lot of the time. Usually, whenever I'm upset, or worried about something, all Edward has to do is smile at me in that sexy, yet reassuring kind of way, and all my previous worries would be forgotten.

He was standing there with Alice, slightly blocking her view of me while they continued their silent conversation. Edward never took his eyes off me. I furrowed my brow at him in confusion. What was going on? And why wouldn't he let Alice walk around him to come to me?

Then Alice spoke at a normal volume so that I could hear their conversation too, now that I was awake.

"She's my friend! I want to hang out with her! I got to do her toes last night, but her fingernails are still nakedly bare," she informed him exasperatedly.

"Now what the hell kind of friend would I be, if I let her walk around like that? Huh? She's half-done! Unacceptable," she stated with finality.

I rolled my eyes and plopped back down on the bed.

_Oh, Lord._

"Alice, she was _sleeping_. She just woke up. Leave. Her. Alone. Take your nail polish somewhere else," he told her.

She growled. "No! Just because-"

"For fifteen goddamn minutes!" he yelled, interrupting her with a snarl.

"Fine!" she yelled right back through gritted teeth, then turned around in a huff and stomped out of the room.

_Ah, sibling rivalry at it's best…_

As soon as I heard Alice's signature door slam, I felt the bed dip beside me, letting me know that Edward was now laying next to me. I turned my face towards him and opened my eyes. I saw his beautifully pale face…his messy bronze hair, his strong, defined jaw. He had such amazingly golden eyes. I could tell that he had recently fed…and, very well, apparently. Those golden orbs were practically glowing. He was smiling down at me…and I felt my heart melt in content as a warm feeling grew in my belly. He was always smiling at me like that. In that special, adoring kind of way. His cool fingers began their usual decent into my long hair and traveled along bare arms, then. I stared up into his bright, golden eyes and gave him a small smile.

I couldn't help but be a little upset though. We still needed to talk. That lil quickie-convo that we had just before I lost awareness again, was _not_ a discussion. I wish that we could leave it at that, and I'm sure Edward does as well, but I didn't even get to talk. When I had tried to, he cut me off with another one of his deliciously fuckhott kisses. He's really good at distracting me.

"Hello, beautiful," he said quietly, then gave the tip of my nose a frosty kiss.

He does that a lot. Kissing my nose…I think he's a bit obsessed with it.

"Hmmm…hi, Edward," I said quietly, then looked away from his penetrating stare.

"What's wrong?" he asked with concern.

I sighed. He could always read me like an open book. While I liked his perceptiveness most of the time, sometimes it really got on my nerves. It never gave me a chance to sort of hide things from him until I could think them through myself, so that I was more prepared for certain discussions. Like, now for example. I have no idea how to start this conversation.

_You have been overreacting. You are hording me away from other people, including your family. Why? When you go into emotional overdrive and become stressed, you take it out on me. Are you sure you can handle this? Can you deal with a crazy girlfriend? Is it too much…too hard? Are you going to stay? Don't leave me…I'll die._

I sighed, still not knowing where to start. But apparently I had said something, because when I turned my gaze back to Edward, I saw that he was now looking at me incredulously. Like, he looked slightly speechless.

Great.

_What the fuck did I just say?_

**You _said_ 'Are you going to stay? Don't leave me. I'll die.' Nice one, doll. Freak him the fuck out, why don't ya** Marie remarked cheekily.

"What?" Edward whispered to me.

"Umm…" I mumbled.

"No," his voice rushed out the one word in a tone that rang with finality.

His teeth snapped suddenly, and he was still peering down at me. Except that those golden eyes were no longer soft and bright. Blacks specks were beginning to filter in and now they was sort of glaring at me.

_Shit._

I started sitting up, and he sat up with me. We were sitting side my side and I glanced at him as I blew out a long breath through slightly pursed lips. I was still trying to figure out how to start this conversation.

**You already started it** Marie reminded me.

Right.

I had to figure out a way to _fix_ it.

"Edw-" I started, but he interrupted me, causing me to cringe at his sharp tone.

"Bella, I never want to hear you talk like that again. Do you hear me? I'm not going to fucking leave and you are _not_ going to fucking die. God_damn_ it! I can't believe you just said that! What, are you suicidal now, too? Christ, Bella...there's only so much I can take -" he said with desperation and anger laced in his tone before I interrupted his little speech.

I needed to stop him before he got too carried away.

"No," I told him, my tone sounding calm and quiet next to his frantic one.

"No, _what_?" he asked.

I shook my head. "No…I'm not suicidal," I told him, looking into his eyes so that he could see the truth in my words.

He exhaled a sharp breath. I saw him swallow a few times before he spoke again. "Where did that come from, then? Huh? Bella, what's wrong? You need to tell me. Right fucking now," he demanded, his words quick and rushed.

He always talked fast when he was losing his composure. When he was upset, he often failed at keeping up with his pretend 'human facade'. He would slip back into his natural habits, and everything would be sped up...his speech, his actions, everything.

I shrugged quietly. I didn't want him to react like that; with anger and panic...and rushed words. Just from his reaction alone, I could tell how high-strung he really was.

"Are you stressed out?" I asked curiously in a quiet voice.

"What the hell kind of question is that?" he snapped, causing me to jump.

**Ohhhh no…no, Edward. No fucking yelling at my pretty Bell** Marie voice admonished him in a soft, clear voice from inside my head.

_Like he can fucking hear you._

**Doll, he will hear me LOUD and _fucking_ CLEAR if I have to come out there** she warned.

_Don't! I need to talk to him. I need to straighten things out. Just fucking chill for now, Marie. Please._

Edward was speaking again before I could concentrate on any response that she might have given me.

"Of course, I'm fucking stressed out! The love of my life practically hinted around the possibility of her being suicidal," he stated exasperatedly.

I shook my head. "No…before, Edward. Before I said that, were you really stressed?" I asked, keeping my voice as calm and quiet as possible, despite how upset he was beginning to make me. I didn't like being yelled at. If he didn't quit, the tears were going to start and it would be all his damn fault.

"Yes."

I nodded. "Why?" I asked curiously.

He stared at me in disbelief for a second, before he got up and began pacing the floor at the foot of the bed. I watched in silence and scooted down to the edge of the bed. His pacing gradually became faster, until soon he was just a little more than a white blur, appearing at one end of the room, then the next. It had been two minutes and he still hadn't responded to me.

_It's true. He really is too stressed out…he can't handle it_ I thought with a sniffle.

His pacing abruptly stopped at the sound of my quiet sniffle and he stared at me. I averted my gaze away from his penetrating, angry eyes and let a single teardrop fall.

"Stop crying," he told me.

I shrugged, silently telling him that I couldn't just turn it off like a damn faucet.

I looked up at him through blurry, watery eyes. "Why aren't you talking to me?" I whispered.

He sighed and roughly ran his hands through his hair in a frustrated gesture. "Sorry. I needed to calm down and I could tell that I was upsetting you with my words and sharp tone, but I just couldn't help myself. I needed to focus on Jasper's talent and absorb his calm before I spoke to you again," he informed me.

I nodded and sniffled again. I quickly wiped at my slightly runny nose with the back of my hand and mumbled, "Makes sense…"

He came to sit by me on the edge of the bed then. He turned his face to the side to gaze at me for a second and run his cool thumb over my cheek, wiping away the two tears that had fallen. He sighed and looked back into my eyes while he spoke.

"Bella…yes. Yes I was stressed out," he admitted reluctantly.

I nodded and he looked away, turning his gaze down to his hands that lay on his lap.

"This morning, I had to listen to you speak about your past. I hate that. I can't erase those things from my memory, no matter how I hard I try, or how much I may want to. I will always remember the words that you speak in that room," he explained quietly.

I reached out my hand and put it on top of his. He turned his palm up and laced our fingers together as he continued to speak.

"It pains me…_immensely_, to know that I wasn't there to stop that shit from happening to you. You are my mate. And I failed you. I didn't protect you when you needed me the most. Apparently, I've been lacking in that department. A lot," he insisted with a nod.

Before I could even attempt to object to that statement, he continued on.

"I wasn't around, when you were a little girl, to save you from that monster, and I wasn't around for seven months, to save you from other monsters. One of my kind, who, apparently never stopped her epic search for you, and other monsters…of the wolf kind," he finished looking back into my eyes.

His were set in determination as he spoke again. "But that's not going to happen anymore. I will not neglect my responsibilities with you anymore. You are the most important thing in the world to me. You are _mine_. My mate. Bella, nobody will ever hurt you again. Nobody will fucking touch you. No vampire. No werewolf. No human," he said with strong conviction.

I nodded with wide eyes in response. "Edward…I think that's where this little problem stems from," I told him quietly.

He furrowed his brow. "What problem? I don't have a problem," he insisted.

I squeezed his hand a bit and gave him a small smile. "Your inability to let others…even your _family_ interact with me now," I told him lightly.

"I let them interact-" he started, but I cut him off with a small shake of my head.

"Not unless you're in the room with us, honey," I said.

He was quiet then, contemplating the truth in my statement.

"I've seen the girls' memories, Edward. I know that the few times when they have interacted with the family, you were there also," I pointed out.

At his stare, I quickly assured him, "It's not a bad thing."

He subtly nodded.

"I'm not saying that you _shouldn't_ be there. In fact, I'm pretty sure that Isabella wants you to be there…all the time, actually" I told him, to which he nodded in response. "But…Edward, you have never had that problem before. Before all of this happened…you leaving, then me bringing you back, then both of my alternates making an appearance in everyone's lives…you were able to leave me alone with your family for an extended period of time with no problems. Alice and I would spend hours in her room, playing Bella Barbie. I would help Esme out in her garden. Carlisle would sit with me and tell me all of these amazing, and interesting stories…things of his past. Emmett would play with me. Edward, you would be gone hunting for three, sometimes four days at a time, and everything would be fine," I pointed out.

"Not anymore," he responded quickly.

I raised my eyebrows at his automatic response. "Exactly…" I said slowly.

"Bella, I'm not going to leave you for four days just to go hunt, when I could travel three hours away into the wilderness to satiate my thirst," he insisted.

I shook my head. "Honey, that's not what I'm suggesting you do. I don't want you to leave for that long," I informed him.

"I won't," he promised.

"But, Edward - the point that I'm trying to make, is that you have never had this problem before. You seem to want to keep me all to yourself. Hoard me away from others, including your family. You are so fixated on the mantra of 'she's mine, my mate, my responsibility', that you are cutting others out of our life. Other that really want to help."

He sighed and closed his eyes before he said quietly, "I'm trying, Bella. I'm trying really hard."

I squeezed his palm, silently telling him that I wanted him to look at me. When he did, I smiled reassuringly and nodded. "I know…" I whispered.

"Bella, it's very hard. It's _extremely_ fucking hard to leave you under someone else's care right now. I…I just don't trust anyone," he told me, getting upset at his realization that he didn't trust his family.

"You are way too important to risk any of them making a mistake with you-" he started before I interrupted him.

"Edward, _you've_ made mistakes…" I pointed out gently.

He sighed and looked at me, defeated. "I can't even leave you in Carlisle's study when you're having your sessions with him," he admitted. "I can't bare to even leave the second floor of the house. I have to stay as close to you as possible. I press my back up against that closed fucking door, and I close my eyes to focus on Carlisle's mind so that I can watch you as you talk to him. I am completely incapable of giving you any form of privacy right now. The only time we're apart is when you're in the bathroom, and even then, it's torture. Isabella's new rule - 'Bath Time Is Private Time'…" he trailed off, looking into my eyes and searching for my understanding.

I nodded for him to continue.

"I fucking hate it. _I_ want to wash her hair. I want her to talk to me and hum _me_ her pretty little songs while I watch her play with her toys in the bubbles," he revealed to me.

I smiled softly at him.

He seemed to hesitate before he spoke again. "Isabella has brought out a weakness in me," he revealed. "I long to take care of you, Bella. I want it. I need it. I relish in the fact that Isabella needs me for…for fucking _everything_. I feed her. I pick out her clothes. I clean up after her. I pick up her toys. I give her medicine when she's sick. I hold her when she cries and _I_ kiss her owwies all better. I put her down for her naps. I've even been putting those little pads on her panties for her since you started your period," he informed me.

_Aw. Did he just say 'owwies'?_

I leaned in close and kissed his cheek. "You're so sweet," I whispered to him.

**_My_ Edward** Isabella insisted in a soft, quiet voice.

He shook his head and looked at me a bit skeptically. "Bella, that may be, but that's not normal. I shouldn't want to take care of you as if you were a small child-" he started but I cut him off with a shake of my head.

"But you _do_," I insisted. "Edward, that's a very, very good thing…especially right now, in our situation. Those qualities that you possess in wanting to be my 'daddy', in a way…they help you be the way that you are with her. Which is wonderful. Isabella adores you. She needs you to remain this way and to not change a thing. Take care of her. Be happy about it, and _don't_ be ashamed, Edward. Don't feel guilty about it, or think that it's wrong. Because if you do…? She'll be able to detect any hesitation, or regret on your part and it will damage your relationship with her. Her bond with you grows everyday. You don't want to break that," I told him.

He nodded. "Okay," he agreed.

"Edward, you need to let the family help-" I started but he cut me off.

"I said I'm trying," he snapped.

I sighed and looked away. I really didn't need him getting angry all over again. I felt him squeeze my palm so I looked back over to him.

He gave me a small smile and whispered, "Sorry."

I nodded and shrugged. "It's okay. Anyway, what I meant with 'letting the family help', is…I need you to find your trust in them again. I know that it's still there, Edward. I mean, come on…do you really think that Carlisle or Esme would ever hurt me?" I asked him skeptically.

It took him a minute, but he finally shook his head 'no'. My eyes widened at the realization that he really didn't trust them all that much anymore. It wouldn't have taken him that long to answer that simple question before.

**Yeah well, he's been away from them for a while** Marie reminded me.

That's right. He _has_ been away from them…just like he was away from me. Now that he has me back, and I'm apparently 'damaged', he doesn't want to share me, or entrust my care to anyone else. A part of me sees the logic in his way of thinking. But the other part of me finds it utterly ridiculous. Esme and the others would never hurt me.

"Edward, what is it?" I asked him, needing further clarification.

"I don't want them doing _my_ fucking job. I take care of you, and no one else," he insisted.

I nodded, trying to understand.

"It's like…I don't know, if they step in, then it would only rub it in my face that I've proved myself unable to take care of you at times. Which is completely untrue, because I can take care of you. I can, I swear it. I can handle an emotional girl, a moody teenager and a naughty five year old. No fucking problem," he stated determinedly.

I sighed. Edward was too proud for his own good. I brought our hands up to my mouth to give his knuckles a soft kiss. "Edward…" I murmured against his cold, hard flesh.

"Yeah?" he whispered.

I brought our joined hands back down to my lap and started tracing the back of his hand with a light, warm fingertip. "Your situation is an odd one, honey," I told him matter-of-factly, as I turned my head to looked back into his eyes. "Being a new parental figure…to an unruly teenager and an abused child. It's normal to get stressed…to need a break every once in a while," I said softly, keeping up my trailing finger.

He nodded.

"I need you to stop being so proud, Edward. Admit that you need help every once in a while," I told him.

His eyes widened. "I don't need-" he started in a hard voice before I interrupted him.

"Edward…" I said while giving him a disbelieving look, trying to beseech him to see my side of things.

He shook his head slowly. "I'm…" he trailed off and exhaled sharply then looked down at our joined hands. "God, Bella…I'm _trying_," he repeated quietly.

I nodded. "For me?"

He looked into my eyes then. "Anything for you…" he breathed out.

After a few seconds of silence and staring at our hands, he spoke again. "It's hard, Bella."

"You can start out small, honey. Like, umm…to separate yourself from a tense situation, you could just go into a different room for a bit, or you can just send the girls outside to play," I suggested.

"You are mine," he told me, seeming to ignore my suggestion.

I nodded and looked at his side profile. "I know…that's why you're going to do what's best for me," I pointed out.

He looked at me and when our eyes made contact again, he stated with conviction, "Always."

I sighed and bit my lip. "Edward?"

"Yes, love?"

"Was that the only reason you were stressed today?" I asked curiously.

He shook his head and looked out the window, stating quietly, "No…"

"Well…what happened?"

"Isabella happened," he responded.

_Huh?_

I furrowed my brow in confusion. "What?" I asked.

_What'd you do?_ I asked my little alternate.

**Wanna play outside** Isabella responded.

That only confused me more.

He took a deep breath, leaning into my side slightly when he did. "Hmm…she's a very impatient, headstrong little girl," he told me quietly, looking back into my eyes.

When I didn't respond, just continued to look confused at his cryptic response, he continued. "She lied…trying to get out of having to finish her lunch so that she could go play outside."

I bit my lip and nodded.

"Now that I think about it, I realize that she's done it before. She claims to be 'full' after a few bites of her food, and then she states that she wants to play outside. I've given in before, not really looking too much into it, but this afternoon…while Isabella was trying to convince me that she was full, Marie took over again and went straight for her sandwich, taking a huge bite out of it. I got suspicious and asked Marie if she was still hungry. She informed me that she was and then advised me not to listen to Isabella because she was lying…wanting to hurry up and go play outside," he told me.

"Oh…"

He chuckled without humor then. "Yeah. I was so angry at first," he informed me, to which I nodded. "But I was able to calm myself down at my reasoning that she has a child's mind and wasn't intentionally trying to starve your body. She just wanted to play, ya know?"

"Mm-hmm…"

_Isabella, you're a brat._

**Bella, you're a brat** she mocked.

"But…" he hesitated then, and ran his free hand roughly through his hair. "But I still had to correct her behavior," he said quietly, looking back into my eyes.

I just nodded, understanding how hard this parenting thing can be sometimes. After all, I used to babysit Katy all the time. I knew some stuff.

He raised his free hand and scooped some hair behind my ear, then gently caressed my cheek with the back of his cool knuckles before letting it fall back to his lap. "I just…I _really_ hate the sounds of your cries," he told me then.

"I know," I said quietly.

He shrugged and dipped his head a bit. "So, yeah…I've been stressed out today," he admitted sheepishly, looking at me through his long, lush eyelashes.

I kissed his knuckles again. "Sorry," I murmured against them.

He shook his head and looked me square in the eye then. "Don't Bella…don't say you're sorry. It wasn't _you_, it was Isabella, and it's over now. I'm not gonna dwell on it. If I did, then I'd go crazy," he told me.

I just nodded and ignored his ignorance on the matter. It was me. Isabella is me. He obviously doesn't understand that yet, but I can give him time. It will obviously take a lot of it for him to fully comprehend all of this. It truly is a very complicated situation.

"So why did you say that?" he asked, bringing me out of my reverie.

"Hmm?"

"You asked me if I was going to stay…and you told me that I had to or you would die."

I sighed. "I was…umm, thinking, and apparently my internal dialogue just leaked out a bit," I hedged.

"Explain," he demanded.

I shrugged. I hated having to admit my weaknesses. I had so many of them. "I…I'm scared, Edward," I reluctantly admitted in a whisper.

"Of what?" he asked, perplexed.

I sniffled and willed myself to not fucking cry, then spoke out in a rush. "Of you leaving. Of getting better. Of someday wanting to hurt people. Of not getting better. Of losing the time. Of you realizing that this is too damn hard. Of you not wanting to 'deal with it' anymore. Of…god, of _everything_-"

"Woah…baby, slow down," he instructed gently, then pulled me into his lap.

He kissed my forehead, then quickly wiped away the traitor tear that had fallen without my permission.

He started speaking in a matter-of-fact tone, then. "I'm not leaving. You're going to get better without wanting to hurt people. I will take care of you and make sure nothing bad happens when you 'lose the time', as you so eloquently put it. I will deal with things as they come, nothing will ever be too hard for me to deal with, Bella. I am a vampire. You are my mate. We are bound together for eternity," he informed me.

I nodded and lay my head down on his shoulder. I sniffled and he shushed me, then began this slow rocking motion that I figured he did with Isabella a lot.

It was sweet.

"I'm still scared," I whispered into his neck.

He tightened his hold on me. "I wish you wouldn't be. Nothing bad is going to happen-" he started before I cut him off.

I rolled my eyes. I wasn't scared of being physically hurt. "Edward, I'm scared that you're going to _leave_."

He stopped our rocking motion then, and lifted my head off of his shoulder. His eyes tightened as he looked at me. He just stared into my eyes, seeming to search for something, while I stared back…wondering what the fuck he was searching for.

"What do I have to do?" he suddenly asked, in a hoarse, strained whisper.

I bit my lip and looked away from his searching gaze then. I focused on his jaw instead. It was a nice jaw. Strong, pale…defined. Sexy.

He shook me a bit, getting my attention. "Bella?" he asked.

_Ugh._

I just shrugged and subtly shook my head. I was a bit perplexed, myself. I didn't know why I wasn't reassured by his presence by now. It had been a week and he'd stuck by me through all the bullshit so far.

_Why wasn't it enough?_

**Because it's just _not_, goddamn it** Marie insisted in a hard tone.

Oh. Marie.

I looked back into Edward's eyes and attempted to explain...but, "Marie won't let me trust," was my only explanation.

He furrowed his brow. "What?" he asked in a slight angry tone.

Apparently, he didn't like that little piece of information.

"Umm…all I can say is that it will take a lot of time, Edward. Time and effort on your part," I told him with a nod.

He continued to stare.

"Because I'm not quite sure how to explain that my alternates are in charge of that part of my mind," I said softly, putting an index to my temple for a second.

He nodded slowly, taking in this information.

I sighed. "I haven't been able to trust in a while, Edward. Marie won't let me. Basically…if you can gain Isabella's and Marie's trust, then you've gained mine."

He caressed my cheek softly then, and his look of anger had melted into one of sadness. "Bella…"

I placed my hand on top of his, where it gently cupped my right cheek. "It's not just you, honey…I can't trust _anyone_. My alternates have made me a very insecure girl, Edward. I love you. But I can't trust you," I told him sadly.

He brought his other hand to my left cheek, cupping my face in his big hands. He kissed my forehead, my nose, then softly pressed his cool lips to mine. I kissed him back, and when he fractionally pulled away, he opened his eyes to look into mine while he whispered against my mouth, "When you get better, it won't be like that, baby."

"I hope so," I whispered back.

He gave me a small smile and chastely kissed my lips again, before he continued. "You won't be so scared and insecure anymore. You'll be able to decide who you can and can't trust," he assured me.

I subtly nodded my head in his hands.

"I promise," he insisted, letting go of my face, and taking both of my hands in his then.

"Okay," I mumbled.

"Don't be scared of getting better, sweetheart," he pleaded.

Unable to assure him, I just gave him a small smile.

I was very scared, there was no denying it. The concept of getting better, or 'healing', as Carlisle liked to put it, was terrifying because I don't know what type of person I'll be when all of this is done and over with. Will I be sadistic? Will I have a constant attitude? Will I want to suck my thumb all the time?

**Don't worry 'bout it** Isabella advised.

**Yeah 'cause we're not fuckin going anywhere, doll. Remember?** Marie insisted.

_Right. You're not going anywhere…_

Edward seemed to sense my worry and enveloped me in his arms, cradling me to his chest and starting that rocking motion again. He didn't speak, just left me to my thoughts, and I was thankful for that. He whispered to me that he loved me. I whispered my assurance back.

EPOV

My Bella wants me to let the family help out more. I knew this already, but hearing her repeat it only served to remind me of that daunting task. I don't want their help, goddamn it. I'm doing just fine taking care of my mate on my own.

But…at least I know that if I ever really need their help, like in some sort of an emergency-type situation, or something equally unlikely, then they wouldn't hesitate to be there for me and my mate.

But that will never happen, and I won't ever need their help, so that will remain to be a hypothetical situation.

I held her tighter to me at those thoughts, reassuring myself that she was safe. I sat there, rocking her and listening to her heartbeat while indulging in her heavenly aroma. I couldn't help but breathe in deeply, savoring her scent, when she was this close to me. She was so beautiful…so beautiful and so incredibly soft. So fragile and delicate. I stuck my nose in her hair and took another deep breath.

_Mmmm…smells so fucking good._

Her hair is so soft. So silky and long and soft. I smiled and started running my fingers through the beautiful strands, occasionally bunching them in my hands. There's just so much of it for me to play with.

"I love you," I whispered to her in the quiet of the room, then let my fingers trail in her silky hair and down her small back.

"I love you, too," she whispered back, her warm breath caressing the side of my neck.

My Bella said that she couldn't trust me, and that's why she had been so insecure lately. While her declaration had hurt, I also understood what she was saying. She's unable to control who she can and can't trust. It would only make sense that her alternates would automatically take over that responsibility for her. After all, they are sort of like her 'protectors', in a way.

The solution for me was simple; get Isabella and Marie to trust me. It shouldn't be that hard. We get along fine and they already adore me. We also have a strong bond. But the fact still remains; it has only been a week.

_Time should remedy the situation._

Right, and I've got plenty of time, so I'm not too worried about it.

"Edward?"

I smiled and loosened my grip on the angel in my arms.

"Yeah, baby?"

"Can I have a lolly?"

"Maybe later, Isabella," I placated her.

She lifted her head off of my shoulder and looked at me with a questioning gaze. "Now?"

I subtly shook my head. "Mm-mm, angel. You need to get your shoes on. We have to go to the store for some stuff," I informed her and gently patted her bottom, encouraging her to hop off my lap and do as she's told.

She nodded. "Kay."

She slid off of my lap and walked over to the closet. When she sat on the floor, and grabbed her shoes, she asked, "What are we getting?"

"Just a few things. Oh, and your also out of apples, sweetie pie," I informed her.

She gasped and looked away from her shoe laces to stare up at me. "They're all _gone_?" she asked with desperation laced in her tone.

I nodded. "Yeah, but it's okay, baby. I promise. We're getting some more today," I reminded her.

She nodded and let out a relieved sigh, then went back to carefully tying her laces. I watched and noticed that Isabella tied her shoes differently from my Bella. Isabella apparently avoided the 'bunny ears' technique, and she also didn't double-knot when she was through.

_Hmmm…interesting._

Fascinating.

She stood from the ground then and stuck her thumb in her mouth as she walked over to me. I simply, grabbed her wrist, gently pulled that little thumb out of her mouth, and held her hand in my own as we walked out of the room and down the stairs, heading for the garage.

When we got down to the living room, Alice sent a glare my way, to which I rolled my eyes. She stepped in front of us then, temporarily blocking our way.

"You promised!" she said indignantly.

"Not now, Alice. We're heading out," I told her, then proceeded to side step the mini-terror with Isabella by my side.

"Edward, just leave her here with me while you run to the store real quick. I'll have her nails polished up and all pretty by the time-"

"No," I interrupted.

She stomped her foot, reminding me a lot of Marie.

Heh…maybe that's where Marie got it from. Alice. Well, Bella got it from Alice, and then it just filtered down to her alternates, causing them both to be insufferable little brats who like to stomp their foot at me all the goddamn time.

_Thank you, Alice._

"Why not?" she demanded, stepping closer to us, so that she had to crane her neck to look up and see my face.

I knew from her thoughts that she was offended. She missed her friend and she was offended by my decisions in keeping my mate with me at all times. She didn't think that I trusted her to take care of my special girl for a measly twenty minutes.

I rolled my eyes. I _did_ trust her…when there was no other option. Like, when I needed to go hunt. But right now, I didn't need to hunt, and Isabella was going to come with me to the store.

That was final.

I stared her down. "Because she is _mine_, she is coming with _me_," I informed my annoying little sister.

"Edward, that's not fair," she insisted.

"Alice, I don't care," I countered.

"Ha! That rhymed…" Emmett informed us from his spot on the couch.

Isabella looked at him.

Emmett gave her a small smile and a little wave.

Isabella blushed.

Alice directed her attention toward Isabella then. "Sweetie, what do you want to do?" she asked in a soft voice.

Isabella looked away from Emmett and turned her gaze to Alice then, with slightly widened eyes.

I growled quietly at Alice and glared at her. She would not put my little girl in the middle of this and try to make her choose sides. Anxiety grew in my chest as I anticipated Isabella's answer. Alice shot me a smug look that made me want to smack her.

Isabella slowly stepped behind my arm, hiding half of her body from Alice's view, and tightened her grip on my hand. "Go with my Edward," she whispered shyly to Alice.

I shot Alice a smug look and pulled Isabella along while Alice huffed in defeat.

_Haha._

"Later, pixie dust," I called out as Isabella and I made our way out to the garage.

Once we were in my Volvo, I double-checked and made sure that Isabella's seatbelt was buckled before starting the car, then I pulled out of the long driveway. I began fiddling with my Ipod as we started traveling down the road towards town.

Isabella broke the silent atmosphere. "We're gettin yummy apples?" Isabella asked shyly in a small voice.

I looked over at my little girl, fastened into the seat by my side.

_Why is she so shy all of a sudden?_

"Yes, angel. I'm getting you some apples," I assured her softly, then turned my attention back to the road.

"Edward?"

I started pressing the down button on my Ipod, scrolling through the massive song selection stored on the small device.

"Hmm?"

"You mad?" she asked hesitantly.

I looked back over at Isabella, furrowing my brow in confusion.

_Do I look mad?_

I quickly checked my reflection in the rearview mirror before responding to my curious little girl. "No, baby…" I trailed off.

"I'm not in trouble no more?" she asked.

I shook my head and leaned over to place a reassuring kiss to her temple. "No more trouble, sweetheart."

"Kay," she said brightly and flashed me a beautiful smile.

I smiled back, and chuckled softly at her adorable expression.

Her attitude did a complete 180 once she made sure that she wasn't in trouble anymore. She was still grounded from playing outside for the day, but I doubted that she would want to play in the backyard today anyway. The storm clouds were beginning to roll in, subtly darkening the sky in their promise to ruin any potential outdoor activities for the people of Forks this evening.

I decided then to just press play on the damn Ipod, not really caring anymore what song flowed through my car speakers at the moment. The tiny buttons were beginning to get on my nerves.

My girl sighed then, and leaned back in her seat, getting more comfortable. "Edward, why the hell didn't Alice just come with us?"

"I don't know," I replied with a shrug.

"She said that she would come next time," Marie insisted.

I nodded. "She did, huh?" I asked, remembering Alice's parting promise of 'next time' as we left the mansion to go to Best Buy the other day.

"Mm-hmm, she sure as fuck did."

I bit my lip in contemplation.

_Why hadn't Alice just come along?_

"Hmm…"

"Is she a goddamn liar?" Marie asked me with narrowed eyes.

I shook my head, remembering how Marie held a strong dislike for people who lie to her and Bella.

"No."

Marie kept her hard gaze on me then. It was almost like she could tell whether I was lying, just by critically staring at the side of my profile for a long time.

"Okay," she conceded quietly after a minute, then grabbed for my Ipod.

A second later, Eminem's 'Bully' started flowing through the speakers. As predicted, Marie turned up the song, and sang along. Loudly.

_Adorable._

By the time Marie was done singing about how she'd be damned if she didn't stand up to a bully, we were parking in the parking lot of the local grocery store, here in Forks. I decided against going all the way out to Port Angeles for this trip because we only needed a few things and I was also worried about the weather.

I wasn't sure about Isabella's awareness habits today…so far, she seemed to be unpredictable. Just coming around to see me sporadically…whenever, and without any warning, and I knew that I didn't want to be out with her when this apparent 'severe thunderstorm with possible hail' started up. From what the meteorologist had said, it was going to get pretty bad, and Alice agreed with him.

From what I understand, some five year olds are scared of loud thunder and flashing lightning. Now, I know that Isabella is a tough little kid, but I still don't want to risk it. I want to be back at home before the storm starts, so that if she does get scared, then I could always just snuggle her all up under our big gold comforter on the bed and keep her safe from 'the scary storm'.

I smiled, knowing that that would be what Isabella would call it; 'The Scary Storm'. She always has to give everything a title. It's so fucking cute and endearing. Just like her.

Marie unbuckled her seat belt and hopped out of the passenger side of the car. She met me around at the hood and took my outstretched hand. I laced our fingers together and started leading her towards the entrance of the store.

"Ooooh…what are we gonna get, Edward?" Marie asked.

"Um, you girls need some stuff, and Isabella is all out of her apples," I informed Marie.

"What stuff?" she asked curiously as we crossed the threshold into the bright, fluorescently lit store.

"Um…well, you see-" I started but she interrupted me.

"Edward, I want in," she told me, pointing to a lone shopping cart in the middle of an aisle.

I nodded as we walked up to it. I held onto the handle, keeping the cart steady, as my girl stepped up onto the side of it, and lifted her right leg, climbing into the cart's basket. Once she was in, she told me to go. I shook my head and told her to sit her little ass down.

She huffed and wiggled her hips a bit. "Just go, Edward. This way, I can reach the _really high_ stuff," she told me, stretching her arms up in the air, causing her little red dress to ride up her creamy white thighs in the process.

I caught a man in his thirties doing a double take of Marie's smooth legs as he turned down the aisle next to ours with a cart of his own.

I growled quietly, feeling my jealousy spike.

_Mine._

I reached out and swatted her ass. "Sit _down_," I told her, repeating myself.

She whined and scowled at me, balling her tiny fists at her sides. I glared at her and made a move to step around the cart, not at all against the idea of throwing her over my shoulder and taking her ass back out to the car to be dealt with.

Marie must have sensed my sudden foul mood, due to the thirty year old pervin-virgin one aisle over, because when I made a move towards her, she automatically sank down to a seated position and stopped the whining noise in the back of her throat.

Once she was seated, and facing me, I breathed a sigh of relief. "Good girl," I told her quietly.

"I want lasagna," was her response.

I nodded and started pushing the cart towards the frozen foods section. I knew that I would be in charge of cooking for the next two days, and, besides making a few sandwiches and placing certain items in the oven, I am completely clueless. So, what's the easy solution to my dilemma? Frozen TV dinners. Stouffers, here we come.

_God, I'm such a cheater._

Marie and I ended up picking ten different frozen dinners, all of which appeared to be complete meals that I would just have to pop in the oven for thirty minutes, or so.

"I want the fuckawesome lasagna, and monterey chicken, and alfredo pasta, and the roast turkey, and the beef tips one, and _ooooooh_! Mac & Cheese!" she exclaimed excitedly.

I grabbed two of those.

"And I want the yummy manicotti, and the Alaskan fish one too. Oh, and a pot pie, too…the creamy chicken one," she told me, pointing to it.

I smiled and put the cold little boxes in the cart at the opposite end of where Marie was sitting. I didn't want them to touch her bare legs and make her cold.

We continued on down the aisle, heading for the drinks sections. I picked up two more 12pk cases of Hi-C juice boxes for my baby Isabella, and some apple-berry juice for Marie. After grabbing a two-liter bottle of wild cherry Pepsi for my Bella, I turned down the next aisle for a loaf of bread and a box of cinnamon teddy grahams. Marie wanted a box of cheese RitzBitz crackers, so I grabbed that off the shelf, too.

I had to pause in the next aisle because Marie wanted to have an argument over which brand of toilet paper to get. I didn't see what the big deal was when I tried to grab for the AngelSoft. I mean, it had a baby on the front, looking all cozy and content, but _nooo_. Apparently, that was 'the wrong fucking choice', because 'that baby doesn't know what the hell he's talkin bout' and 'Charmin kicks all the other toilet paper rolls asses'.

_Whatever._

So after I grabbed a small package of Marie's precious Charmin toilet paper, we headed over to the produce section.

I listened to Marie's subtly hum along with the overhead speakers as I ripped off a plastic bag from the dispenser and proceeded to fill it with seven apples, both red and green.

"No," Marie said.

I looked at her in question, while I reached for the last apple.

I want oranges," she said.

I nodded. "Okay, love. How many?" I asked, ripping off another plastic bag.

She put her thin finger to her chin and tapped it a few times, seeming to think about it.

"Hmmm…three," she finally said.

While I was picking out the three best oranges this store had, Marie pointed to the freshly cut fruit on the other side of the produce aisle. "Ooooooh!" she said with soft puckered lips.

I smiled, pleased that my girl could get this excited about healthy food, and not just candy.

"Hold on, angel."

"Hurry, Edward. They got fuckawesome watermelon and yummy-sweet strawberries!" she told me excitedly.

"Okay," I said while hurrying at a human pace to tie off the bag with her oranges in it.

I rolled the cart over to the side with the freshly cut fruit, and grabbed a small container of both seedless watermelon, and strawberries. Marie flashed me a beautiful smile as I handed them to her. I pressed my lips to the soft hair at the top of her head, and gave her a kiss.

Now to pick up what we had originally come here for. Feminine products.

Since I had been preparing my girls' panties for her, I knew that my Bella was almost out of her supplies. So I started strolling over to the other side of the store, towards the pharmacy/beauty/baby section.

When we stopped in an aisle stocked full of feminine products, Marie scrunched up her nose and turned her face in the other direction with a muttered, "Ew," under her breath.

I chuckled at her display, then quickly grabbed a medium sized package of the StayFree pads that I knew my Bella used. I tossed it into the cart, next to Marie, and laughed when she picked it up and threw it to the other side of the cart, furthest away from her. I could easily see her saying, 'it has cooties'. She didn't want to touch anything that had to do with a menstrual cycle. It was so ironically amusing.

I went down the next aisle then, and grabbed another stick of my Bella's Secret deodorant because I knew that she was almost out. As we were leaving that section, I heard Marie's sudden gasp, so I looked down at her to see what was wrong.

I saw that her lips were slightly parted from the gasp, and she had a seriously transfixed gaze…staring intently at something. My eyes followed hers, and when they landed on her item of interest, I immediately rejected it.

_No._

"Want it…" Isabella whispered, her gaze never leaving the 3pk of pastel colored toddler pacifiers.

"No."

_Hell no._

"I want it," she whispered again.

"Isabella…" I trailed off, trying to get her attention.

It took her a few seconds, but she eventually succeeded in breaking her trance. She tore her gaze away from the baby accessories and looked at me.

I leveled my gaze with hers, and stated in a calm, but serious tone, "No."

The soft keening sound of a whine started then. It began in the back of her throat, but Isabella's mouth remained closed, and soon, her eyes began to water with salty tears.

_Fuck…_

I gave her my perfected 'stern face' then. "Don't you do it," I warned her.

The noise continued and a little tear fell from her right eye, then proceeded to stream a wet trail down her rosy cheek.

"Don't throw a fit in the store, Isabella. I mean it," I told her, accompanying my 'stern face' with a slight glare for added affect.

Her only response was to point to the package of pacifiers and stare at me with pleading, watery chocolate eyes. "Please," she managed to squeak out right before she sniffled at me.

_Goddamn it._

I quickly grabbed the package off the rack on the wall, and handed it to her. I was relieved when that wretchedly annoying noise that always indicated a temper tantrum had come to a sudden stop. Her sad face had been immediately replaced with a bright smile, just for me, and her chocolate eyes sparkled up at me in appreciation.

I am such a pussified pansy.

_Yep. And she has you wrapped around her little finger._

I sighed and walked towards the section with the cleaning supplies while I listened to Isabella tell me about how one of the pacifiers was pink with pretty hearts, and another one was purple with pretty flowers, and another one was yellow with pretty stars.

_Fuck my life._

I am not going to let her use those. I just gave her the package to shut her up, but now she is clearly becoming obsessed with the concept of having a 'binky' again. What the fuck is a binky, anyway?

_Apparently, it's a pacifier. For babies._

I groaned quietly in frustration and peered down at my smiling little girl. She looked so damn happy…rosy cheeks, and all, while she kept a death grip on the small package of fucking pacifiers. I took a second to glare at the tiny items that had become my enemy, before I reached up to a shelf and grabbed a bottle of Tide laundry soap and a bottle of Downy fabric softener. We were almost out of both items, and since my Bella was quickly going through all of her cotton panties, because I didn't want Isabella wearing silk, or lace, I had to do a few loads of laundry tonight.

When we were waiting in line at the checkout counter, I decided to try something and asked Isabella in a soft voice, "Sweetheart, aren't you my big girl?"

She nodded and sucked on her bottom lip.

I pointed to the small package in her hand. "Those are for babies, angel," I told her.

She furrowed her brow in confusion, so I continued.

"You're a big girl, huh?"

She smiled. "Yah-huh, I'ma big girl."

"Big girls don't have binkies," I informed her.

"Yah-huh, they do, Edward," she told me with a nod.

_Damn it._

I subtly shook my head and tried again. "No, they don't."

"Ya-huh…they got thumbs and binkies," she insisted in her soft, childish voice that always served to remind me that she really is just a baby.

_What the hell am I going to do?_

I started putting our items on the conveyor belt then, trying to figure out what I had gotten myself into by handing her that small package. I had only ever seen pacifiers in an infant's mouth, and maybe the occasional toddler. Not pre-schoolers, though, and that's exactly what Isabella is. She is _five_ not two, goddamn it.

I sighed, and grabbed the fruit, placing it next to the other items on the belt. Just then, a little boy, by the age of four walked by us. He was holding onto his mothers hand, and a dark blue pacifier was firmly attached to his mouth.

_Oh, come the fuck on!_

I looked away from the little brat then, and turned back towards Isabella. She had a delighted smile on her smug face, that clearly said 'told ya so'. She had obviously seen the wretched little pacifier boy as well, and he had just proven her point for her.

I gave a slight glare at her smug look, and snatched the package of pacifiers out of her hand, placing it on the conveyor belt, next to the feminine pads.

I pinched the bridge of my nose and ran my hand through my hair, gripping it in frustration. Maybe I could just act like I lost them. Or I could say that they 'accidentally' got left at the store.

Just _something_.

I had to come up with something that prevented her from becoming a 'binky baby' again, and kept me out of the doghouse at the same time. I really don't want to look like the bad guy in this scenario. I could already see how those little things made her happy, and I don't want her to view me as the person who took her damn binky away. That would make me an asshole…no better than that sick fuck, Jim, when he 'killed' her toys right in front of her.

_Shit, this is a sticky situation._

I started grabbing the shopping bags and placing them inside the cart with Isabella then. She helped me situate the bags around her petite form, so that I could turn away from her to slide my credit card through the machine, and pay for the $70 bill.

I was walking the cart full of groceries and Isabella out to the car, when I decided to try again. I wanted to attempt to convince her of her big-girl status one more time. I looked down at Isabella, who was staring intently at the bag that I knew had those damn pacifiers in it, and called her name. Her head shot up and she looked at me in question.

"Pretty girl, binkies are for babies and-" I started before she cut me off with a shake of her head.

"Nuh-uh, Edward. You don't know 'bout babies, but it's okay…I teach you."

_Is that so?_

I raised my eyebrows at her, and waited for her to 'teach me'.

"See, ba-ba bottles and sippy-cups are for babies," she explained.

I nodded in agreement.

"But I can still be a big girl and have my thumb and my binky," she informed me with an adorable smile.

_Hmm…_

"Well, sweetie…I think you're a little bit confused, angel. I know that bottles and binkies are for babies, but I bet that you could still be a big girl with your thumb and a _sippy-cup_. Do you want a sippy-cup, sweetheart?" I offered.

_'Cause I'll go back in there right fucking now, and trade in those stupid pacifiers for a little cup with a weird top on it._

She sucked on her top lip, then shook her head. "Nope, Edward, I told you…sippy-cups are for babies. And I'm a big girl."

_Apparently you're not, because 'binkies' are for babies._

Damn. It.

We were by my car now, so I reached my arms out for her. "C'mere, baby."

She stood up so I hooked my hands under her shoulders and lifted her out of the cart, then placed her on the ground with a kiss to her forehead. "Get in the car and buckle up, angel."

I loaded up the back seat with the shopping bags with a defeated sigh. I was going to have to hide them from her, or something. It bothers me a bit when she sucks her thumb, because she shouldn't need it as much as she does, and besides…it just looks odd for an adult to have their thumb in their mouth. But I know that she's not likely to give it up anytime soon…that's why I made that bedtime rule for her; to sort of wean her off of it. If she can only have it during certain times, and learns to go throughout the day's normal stresses without the comfort of her thumb, then eventually she won't need it anymore. All that these damn pacifiers would do is hinder her progress with that.

I sat in the driver's seat and started the car.

"Edward…" she said with a slight scowl on her face.

I sighed and looked at her question.

_Now what?_

"How come the baby gets something special, but not _me_?" Marie asked indignantly.

I rolled my eyes.

_Right, because we wouldn't want you to feel left out._

She always feels left out.

"I got your reeses pieces from the check-out lane, sweetheart. They're back there in the bags somewhere," I told her distractedly while turning left into traffic.

She got a big smile on her face and hurriedly unbuckled her seatbelt, then shot out of her seat, bending over in between our seats and reaching into the grocery bags in the back seat.

Her hip pushed against my right arm and I swatted her ass. "Sit back down and buckle your seat belt Marie! Christ…there's a cop at the end of this road," I told her.

She huffed and snatched up the small bag of her reeses pieces candy. "Okay, okay…don't get your pretty man-panties all in a twist," she remarked then sat back on her heels and gave my cheek and kiss before she twisted around and sat in her seat. She had her belt buckled exactly four seconds before we passed by the patrol car sitting on the corner.

She opened the bag of candy and started munching on the little round candies. "Mmmm…" she moaned at the taste.

I exhaled sharply as I felt a new wave of lust overcome my body. Her heavenly moans never failed to radiate pure sex.

_Mmmm, indeed._

Marie turned on my Ipod then, and immediately began singing along with Ashanti's 'Baby', while occasionally eating a piece of her candy. When the song was done and she had thoroughly sung her little heart out, she concentrated on finishing the small bag of peanut butter treats that she had been holding onto and using as a play microphone.

After cupping her hand and pouring some reeses pieces into it, she quickly stuck her palm to her lips, letting the candy fall into her mouth. She smiled up at me, but then stopped mid-chew to sit and blink…and stare at me. She finally swallowed and after two minutes of her silence, I glanced at my girl curiously.

"…What?"

She blinked once and subtly shook her head. "Edward, tell me you didn't," Bella said slowly.

I furrowed my brow. "Didn't what, love?"

Her eyes flashed with anger as she quickly unbuckled her seat belt and went for the back seat. Again.

"Bella, I swear to _God_-"

"Fucking hell, Edward-"

I quickly swatted her ass. "Sit _down_."

She did, and when she buckled her seat belt, I noticed the small package that she had in her hand. She scowled at me.

"Oh," was all I could say.

"Oh! Oh? Edward, what were you _thinking_?" Bella snapped.

I sighed. "She was starting to cry-" I started but she cut me off.

"So?"

I looked at Bella incredulously. I had _told her_ what her cries did to me.

She ran her hand through her hair in frustration - a habit that she picked up from me. "Edward, you _have_ to have more of a backbone when it comes to her," Bella told me.

_Hey! I have a fucking backbone with my five year old, damn it._

Now it was my turn to mess up my hair. "Bella, what the hell was I supposed to do? Huh? She was going to throw a fucking fit in the goddamn store!" I yelled at her.

Bella crossed her arms over her chest and glared at me. "And? Katy used to do that shit all the time. You take the little brat _out_ of the goddamn store and you bring her back to the car until she calms down. You _don't_ give in. You _don't_ buy Isabella fucking pacifiers for babies, Edward," she advised in a harsh tone.

I was speechless for a moment, absorbing what my Bella had just said. It made sense. And she had fucking experience with that little Katy girl. Why hadn't I thought of that before?

_Because you're a dense motherfucker._

I should be asking my Bella for advice, not Esme and Alice.

"Jesus!" she cried exasperatedly.

_And see? They **are** for babies._

"Thank you," I muttered.

"What?" she asked incredulously with raised eyebrows.

"Nothing. I tried telling Isabella they were for babies, but-"

"Christ-" she cut me off, rolling her eyes.

I interrupted her this time. "Bella, I-"

"I mean, you have _got_ to be fucking kidding me!" she yelled and clenched her fists.

_Okay, why is she getting so damn angry?_

I gripped the steering wheel tightly, not wanting to yell anymore at the beautifully frustrated girl sitting next to me. "Bella, what's the problem? I mean…yeah, I understand being upset, because I'm a little upset myself, but…_fuck_, why are you so angry about this?"

She huffed and shook her head a bit. She uncrossed her arms, then picked up the small package from her lap and gripped it in her hand again. She gritted her teeth a couple of times, but when she spoke, she seemed a bit calmer.

She exhaled sharply and narrowed her eyes a bit. "Do you know how hard it is right now…do you have _any_ goddamn idea what it's putting me through, to not to rip this package open and stick one of these god forsaken things in my mouth? Hmm?" she asked lowly.

I looked at her incredulously.

"And Isabella is not fucking helping matters any!" she snapped to the side...and I had a feeling that that little comment was directed more towards Isabella, than me.

"Baby, what…?"

She clenched her jaw and stared at me. "These things are like crack to me," she ground out through gritted teeth and gripped the package tighter in her hand.

_Okay, maybe she's still a little angry, after all._

Before I could respond, she continued on with her rant.

"Edward, you don't know a lot of things about me. One of them being that I was addicted to pacifiers, or fucking 'binkies', whatever - until I was five, when Jim took them all away from me. That's when I started in with my thumb," she revealed.

I shook my head. "You're not five anymore-"

"No, but Isabella _is_!" she pointed out.

_Fine. Point taken._

"So just shut up and listen," she said exasperatedly.

I resolved to 'shut up and listen', then nodded for her to continue.

She sighed then, and glanced out the window before looking back to me. "My mom…she did absolutely nothing to try and dissuade me away from these things," she told me, holding up the package for my viewing pleasure.

"When I was three, instead of weaning me off of them, like a _**normal** fucking parent_ would, she made me this…like, this fucking _necklace_ with my collection of pacifiers tied around it. They were attached to it like charms, or something, so that I could always have access to them," she informed me.

She bit her lip. "I had a _very_ strong oral fixation when I was a kid because of my mother's neglect, and it passed through to Isabella. It's absolutely hopeless when it comes to that kid's addictions. I know, because it used to be me. I know how she feels…" she trailed off, sounding defeated now.

I grabbed her hand and rubbed soothing circles into her palm. After a minute, she spoke again.

"Why did you have to buy these for her?" she asked in a soft voice that cracked, holding up the 3pk package of pastel pacifiers.

I shrugged. I hadn't known that it was going to be that big a deal. "I fucked up," I admitted quietly.

She nodded and stayed quiet, then. I noticed how she was gripping the small package and staring at it intently…the same way that Isabella had been eyeing it earlier in the store.

_Great. Just. Fucking. Great._

We pulled into the garage and as soon as I turned the ignition off, Bella spoke up again. She began to slowly hand me the small package, and when I gripped it in my own hand, it took her a second to actually let go of the cardboard material. She swallowed thickly, then tore her intent gaze away from the pacifiers to look up into my concerned one.

She whispered to me then. "I remember…um, I remember what Jim did. You have to do it too," she told me quietly.

I furrowed my brow. "Bella, I'm not going to do _anything_ that that schitzed out motherfucker did-" I started in a tone that was laced with my anger, but she held up a delicate palm to stop me.

She kept up our eye contact as shook her head slowly. "Nothing like that," she whispered.

"What, then?" I asked.

"The pacifiers…" she trailed off.

My eyes automatically widened with rapt attention.

_Could she give me the solution that I'd been fretting over for the past hour? Could she fix this?_

She bit her lip and said conspiratorially, "You have to poke little holes in them. Maybe snip them at the tip a little bit with some scissors? It makes them lose their suction, and then they will no longer be appealing. Isabella will come to you, upset…ask you what's wrong with her binky. Just tell her that it's broken," she told me quietly.

I nodded, thankful for her advice. I really should start talking to her about this confusing parenting crap more often. She clearly knows what she's doing.

She sighed and it almost sounded like it was in regret. She looked so sad, and she was staring longingly at something to my side. I followed her eyes' trail and noticed that she was looking at the package of pacifiers that I had set on the dash.

_Aw._

I leaned in to get her attention and softly kissed her pouting pink lips, then skimmed my way up to her smooth forehead. "I'm sorry," I murmured against her warm flesh.

She nodded and trailed her fingers along my arm. "It's okay…you didn't know," she shrugged.

I ran my fingers softly through her hair by her temple and ear, then cupped her jaw. "Yeah, but I should have," I reasoned.

She bit her lip and furrowed her brow, looking at me skeptically. "You're allowed to make mistakes, honey," she told me softly.

I kissed her adorable button nose and smiled then, relishing in the reassurance that I felt at her quiet statement.

_I'm allowed to make mistakes._


	40. Never Again

EPOV

"Bella!"

Bella and I were in the kitchen, putting the groceries away when Alice started calling for her to come into the living room.

"Yeah?" Bella mumbled from her spot beside me while blindly reaching into a shopping bag.

"Come in here with me," Alice requested in a persuading tone.

I took the frozen Stouffers dinner out of Bella's hand and kissed her sweet mouth, then murmured an, "I love you," against those warm lips, before nudging her in that direction.

I had realized how much of a dick I was being to Alice earlier, but I just couldn't seem to help myself at the time.

I mean…she was actually trying to interrupt my mate's peaceful state while she slept in the bed that I had provided for her.

And then, she wanted to engage in gossipy girly crap immediately after my sleeping beauty awoke, regardless of her still groggy state.

Then, she had the preposterous idea of trying to persuade my little girl to become separated from me…to actually stay here, while I went to the grocery store here in town. Without her. Right, like that would ever happen. Especially since the things that I had planned on getting were items specifically for her, and no one else.

But I didn't want to hinder Alice's 'girl-time' with her best friend any longer, so I encouraged Bella to leave the rest of the groceries for me to put away, and to go on into the living room. I knew that Alice already had the manicure stuff out and ready on the coffee table, waiting for my Bella's return.

While my Bella was in the living room, getting her nails buffed and polished, I stuck to the mundane, human task of putting groceries away. I noticed that Jasper was away at the moment, and could hear from Alice's thoughts that she missed him. He was away hunting again, because he wanted to be extra careful around my mate's menstruating body. I was thankful for his caution on the matter.

I was keeping busy in the kitchen, working at a deliberate slow pace when Carlisle walked in. He grabbed the box of cinnamon teddy grahams and put them in the cabinet while I stuck my little girl's juice boxes in the fridge. When I reached for the various fruits, to stick them in the fridge as well, I decided that there was no time like the present and that I needed to have this conversation with him…since he _is_ my Bella's doctor, after all.

So, I told him…about my epic fuck-up. With the damn pacifiers.

I saw how he quirked a small smile and I heard the amusement in his mind before he tried to hide it from me, while simultaneously trying to straighten his expression into one of nonchalance.

I rolled my eyes. "Laugh it up, old man…"

He chuckled. "Edward, you know that you have no one to blame but yourself. You cannot give into the child just because she has a tantrum. Ask any parent around. That's like…the golden rule, or something," he told me while a small smile played on his lips.

"Whatever," I muttered.

"So what do you plan to do?" he asked, putting the new loaf of bread into the bread box that Esme had recently purchased.

I took the small package of pacifiers out of my pants pocket then, and showed it to him. He raised his eyebrows slightly as he appraised them, before looking back to me inquisitively.

I sighed, suddenly unsure of myself and not liking the current predicament that I had seemed to put myself in. "Well, Bella said to go ahead and give them to her. To act as if nothing is out of the norm. Then, after a few days, I just have to take one of them and poke little holes into the rubber material, causing it to loose what she called, the 'suck appeal'. Then, maybe the next day…oh, I don't know, I might slightly snip the rubber tip of another one with a pair of scissors…" I trailed off suggestively.

He nodded. "So, you're going to sabotage the binkies," he stated simply.

I nodded and folded my arms across my chest. "Basically."

He slightly chuckled and shook his head, then clapped me on the shoulder. "Good luck, son."

"Yeah, thanks…" I mumbled, still trying to wrap my head around the fact that my Bella was going to have a pacifier in her mouth for the next day, or so.

_Weird._

I shoved the pacifiers back into my pocket then, and grabbed the small package of Marie's precious Charmin toilet paper off the counter. All of the groceries were put away now, but I still had to put this last item in our bathroom, and then I'd be finished. I begun to carefully poke small holes into the plastic packaging while I stood and listened to Carlisle tell me about how he and Esme were basically ready to leave on their hunting trip, and that she was just putting a few changes of clothes for the two of them in a small backpack at the moment.

"Are you sure you don't want to come along?" he asked.

I immediately nodded. "Positive," I stated firmly.

_I. Am. Not. Leaving._

"Alright, well if you or Bella need anything, just call my cell. I won't hesitate to come back if either of you need me," he assured me before turning on his heel and heading for the front door to wait on Esme.

I followed after him, toilet paper in hand, and walked into the living room, where I saw my beautiful Bella sitting on the floor at the coffee table across from Alice's small form. She had her hands on full display on the table top, her finger's spread wide and ready for Alice's ministrations. Bella looked up and saw me standing there, staring. She blushed and smiled at me. I smiled back. She pursed her pink lips and blew me a little kiss. I mouthed the words 'I love you'. She was just so fucking perfect and beautiful and selfless, sitting there in that pretty red dress, and letting my little sister polish her nails a pastel pink. Even though we all knew that she hated nail polish, not to mention the color pink.

Bella's eyes averted from mine then, and focused on Esme as my mother passed by me to get to the door. She was intent on starting their trip as soon as possible. She was looking forward to some alone time with Carlisle. I smiled, happy with my decision not to tag along, and that they could have their romantic time together for a few days.

Bella's sharp intake of breath drew my attention back to her. In fact, it drew everyone's attention to her. Carlisle paused his exit at the front door to turn around and look at my mate with deep concern. Bella started blinking and I saw her grit her teeth, before she told a concerned Alice that she was alright in a soft voice. Alice looked at her skeptically.

"Really…" Bella breathed out, then nodded to her spread out pale pink fingernails.

"I'm done, sweetie. They just need to dry now," Alice assured her while keeping a concerned, yet critical eye on my girl.

"Bella?" I called out softly.

She slowly breathed threw her nose and out of her mouth three times before she turned to look at me with dazed, blinking eyes. I heard a muttered, "Damn it," fall from her perfect lips before she responded. She was displaying signs of going out of awareness, but was clearly trying to fight it.

"Yeah?" she asked weakly.

"You okay, baby?" I asked, stepping towards her seated form.

She bit her lip and nodded, "Mm-hmm…" she hummed, before sighing.

A second later, the blinking stopped and I saw the pupils in her chocolate eyes shrink a bit, quickly bringing them back into focus. She wasted no time in whipping her head around in the direction of the front door, where Carlisle and Esme stood. She put her hands by her sides and pushed herself up from the ground into a standing position then, while keeping her intent eyes on my parents. She started walking over to them with a determined stride.

As she started walking over towards them, Alice suddenly called out, "Wet nails!" to remind my girl not to touch anything until they were dry.

She just remotely nodded her head in response as she approached the front door. Within a few seconds, she was standing next to Carlisle and Esme, but instead of stopping, she lithely stepped around their still figures, effectively putting herself in between them and the front door.

She looked down at her side and gripped the silver door knob so tightly that her small knuckles began to turn white. She tore her gaze away from her hand then, and looked back towards us as she abruptly closed the slightly ajar door with a resounding _slam_.

She stood in front of the door and leaned her petite form against it while cocking her head to the side a bit, and letting her eyes slowly trail up and down, critically eyeing the two vampires in front of her.

"Where you goin?" Marie asked casually.

"We're going out," Carlisle responded as Marie's inquisitive eyes quickly flicked over to him.

She nodded at Carlisle and turned her gaze to Esme then. "Mom?"

Esme smiled gently at her. "Yes, dear?"

Marie furrowed her brow and eyed the shoulder straps of the backpack that Esme was wearing, before pointing a thin index finger at it. "Why are you wearing that fuckin thing, if you're only going out?" she asked curiously.

"We're going out for a few days," Esme responded.

Marie brought her hand back to her side and was quiet for a minute, seeming to think about something. Soon, her eyes became guarded and she straightened her back, then asked in a curt tone, "Are you coming back?"

Carlisle and Esme nodded immediately.

"Yes. Yes, of course, we're coming back," Carlisle assured her.

Marie's eyes flashed away from Esme then, and focused back on Carlisle.

She stared into his gold eyes for sixteen seconds before she asked through gritted teeth, "Are you bein a goddamn liar?"

"No," was his quick response.

Marie glared at him then, seeming to search for the truth in his eyes. I was grateful that despite Marie's cold glare, Carlisle's reassuring gaze never faltered. Not once.

He knew from this slight interrogation that Marie was feeling insecure. _Very_ insecure. She didn't trust any of us yet, and her display right now was strongly reaffirming that fact in everyone's minds. It was only serving to remind us all that _she_ is the alternate with abandonment issues…not Isabella, or even my Bella. Carlisle and Esme have abandoned her before…we all have. Her concerns that my parents 'won't come back' and that my father is being 'a goddamn liar' are very justified and relevant at the moment. Marie's instincts are clearly telling her to not let them leave.

The sight of Esme wearing a backpack, indicating that they had packed something before heading out, must have set her off, causing my Bella to go out of awareness so that Marie could find out, first hand, exactly what was going on.

Two minutes later, her gaze softened and she sighed as she looked back at Esme. "When you comin back, Ma?" she mumbled in a small voice.

_Aw._

Esme stepped forward and enveloped my small girl in her maternal arms then. Marie's eyes widened at the foreign contact from her, and I internally cringed.

My Bella may have been affectionate with Esme on occasion, but Marie certainly hasn't. Yes, Marie seems to have accepted Esme as a maternal figure, but she is _not_, by any means, an openly affectionate girl. Even with me, she needs to be the one to initiate any physical contact.

I tensed and looked on with a concerned gaze.

I didn't want Marie to recoil from the hug and hurt Esme's feelings. But, at the same time…I didn't want Marie to feel pressured into being affectionate with anyone.

There was also a part of me that didn't want anyone but me touching her. Even my mother. Even if it's just for a hug. I felt my jealous, possessive side start to rear it's ugly head.

_Hands **off**! She is mine._

I exhaled a sharp breath and tried my best to push those ridiculous feelings aside. It's just a hug from Esme. No harm is intended.

_Esme won't hurt her. Esme won't try to take her from me. Esme **won't** hurt her…_

It took four seconds, but Marie eventually, half-heartedly, patted Esme's back in return, and I sighed in relief. When Esme broke their embrace, I smiled, glad that it was over. My mate didn't need to be in anyone's arms but my own.

Esme stepped back and leaned into Carlisle's side while smiling warmly at Marie. "Tuesday evening, darling," she answered.

Marie looked down and furrowed her brow in concentration. "Today is Sunday…" she muttered quietly to herself.

"Yes," Carlisle agreed.

Marie subtly nodded at him and looked back into his eyes with a smirk. She rocked back on her heels and bit her bottom lip, then gave them a short wave. "Okay, see ya Doctor Dad," she said, before turning and heading up the stairs.

I let out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding, sighing in relief.

"Goodbye, dear," he told her retreating form.

He was glad that the situation had easily been diffused and that Marie no longer seemed to be upset by their impending departure for a two day hunting trip.

I gave my parents a parting nod before following after Marie. I heard the front door close, signaling that they had left, just as I made it to the second story landing.

"Hey, babe," I said as I fell into step by her side.

"Hey, sexy," she responded with a wink.

She reached out for my free hand and I didn't hesitate to link our fingers together now that her nails were dry.

After a few seconds of silence, I spoke. "It's just two days, sweetheart," I assured her in a soft voice.

She nodded and turned her head to smile at me. "I know."

"Will you miss them?" I asked curiously.

"Ya, Mom is nice," she responded casually with a shrug.

"Mm-hmm…" I hummed in agreement.

We were in the bedroom now, so I told Marie to wait for me by the dresser while I went into the bathroom to put these four rolls of toilet paper away in the cabinet. When I came back out, Marie had a curious look on her face, as if to say 'why the fuck am I waiting for you by the dresser', but I just smiled at her and casually strolled up to her side, then proceeded to pull open Bella's panty drawer.

It was that magical time again. Time for a fresh pair of padded panties. I could tell by the way Marie had immediately scrunched up her little button nose, that she was not happy about that. She watched with a look of slight disgust as I tore the plastic wrapping away from a new StayFree pad, and began removing the small adhesive strips from it.

She took a small step back.

I tore my gaze away from my task at hand and subtly shook my head at her. "No…" I trailed off in a firm tone.

She stopped the beginnings of her retreat then, so I muttered a quiet, "Good girl," as I began sticking the small pad to a clean pair of purple cotton panties. When I was done, I held the panties out to her and after a few short seconds, she reluctantly took them from my grasp, using only her fingertips to grip them.

"Marie?"

"Hmm…" she hummed in a subdued tone, eyeing the pad with disdain.

"Is Isabella listening right now?" I asked.

Her eyes flashed over to mine then, and she furrowed her brow at me before she slowly nodded her head in response.

I nodded. "Good," I said softly.

"Why?"

"Because you girls seem to be a bit confused when it comes to changing out of the panties that I prepare for you…" I trialed off.

She just stared, so I continued on, hoping that Isabella was paying close attention, as well.

"When you take your panties off, angel, I want you to take off the pad that is already on there, too…take the used pad off, and put it in the trash can. Then, you take the old panties to the hamper that's in the closet and put them in there. Do you understand?" I asked, hoping that I explained the whole 'pad-changing process' thoroughly enough so that a five year old would understand it.

"Sure," she replied nonchalantly.

"Okay, so that means that I don't want to see anymore balled up panties, with the used pad still attached to them, by the trashcan in the bathroom," I reaffirmed.

She nodded.

"Okay, go on," I instructed her with a pointed look towards the bathroom.

As she turned and began walking in that direction, I went to the closet to retrieve the hamper that had a week's worth of dirty clothes in it. Alice told me that she would handle the laundry for me tonight, and for that, I was thankful. I didn't want to mess anything up. I heard that if a red sock gets mixed in with a load of white clothes, then the results can be disastrous. I didn't even know if we had any red socks in the hamper, but I knew there were a few pairs of my Bella's red panties. I'm sure that those would cause the same amount of damage that a sock would.

When my girl came out of the bathroom two minutes later, I held out my hand to her expectantly. I wanted to add the panties that she had been wearing to the hamper so that those could be washed this evening, as well. She didn't hesitate to skip her way over to me with an adorable smile on her face.

"Edward, I'm a big girl, huh? I did it all by myself," Isabella stated proudly, as she handed over the small pair of panties that she had balled up in her tiny fist.

I smiled gently at her and placed a cool kiss to her forehead. "Yes, angel," I murmured against her warm flesh.

She gave a small giggle as I tossed the balled up panties into the hamper at my side.

"Edward, hold me," she requested and rocked onto her tippy toes in front of me.

I turned back to my little girl and chuckled as I hooked my hands under her shoulders, lifting her to my chest. I seated her on my left forearm as she wrapped her arms around my neck and squeezed, giving me one of my favorite hugs. I tightened my hold on her thin frame, and caressed her back between her small shoulder blades.

"Love you," she mumbled next to my ear.

"I love you too," I told her.

She kissed my cheek, then loosened her grip on my neck and pulled back a little to look at my face. "Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"My binky?" she asked sweetly.

_Okay, show time Cullen. It's just for a few days…_

Right.

I gave her a small smile, then used my free hand to reach into my pocket and pull out the small package. As soon as Isabella caught sight of it, she grinned at me, then started bouncing in place on my arm a bit, clearly getting excited.

_It's ridiculous how adorable she can be._

I kissed her button nose and murmured a soft, "Hold on, angel."

I loved seeing her happy and excited. I just wished that she was becoming excited over something else. Something other than a package of pacifiers.

I walked us over to the bed then, and sat down on it, keeping Isabella straddled in my lap. I let go of my hold around her back and brought the offending package in between us. She sucked on her bottom lip and reached out to gently run her fingertip along the plastic barrier around the pacifiers. I watched as her intent gaze turned from excited to one of longing.

I sighed then, resigned to my fate. I had gotten us into this mess, so I had to deal with it. I, once again, resolved to follow my Bella's advice and asked, "Which one do you want, baby girl?"

"Pink with pretty hearts, Edward," she responded immediately, focusing back on my face again.

"Okay," I whispered.

"B'cuz it's pink like my pretty twinkle toes," she added as an afterthought.

My eyes flashed over to her nails then, and sure enough…she was right. The pastel pink pacifier with the 'pretty hearts', was the exact same shade of pink as her fingernail polish. I briefly wondered if Alice had planned it like that.

"Pretty please?" she said in an almost desperate tone when I hadn't immediately started opening the package for her.

I looked away from ten pink fingernails and gazed back into a pair of chocolate eyes. "Patience, baby," I admonished her, then began to carefully tear open the small package.

I didn't want to just rip it open and risk the pacifiers being flung out of the package accidentally, then landing on the floor. I had a feeling that that wouldn't stop her from just grabbing one of them off the floor and slipping it in between her lips, and that was just completely unacceptable. Isabella would not be putting anything that had been on the floor, in her mouth. I could clearly see me snatching a dirty pacifier out of her mouth, and I was almost positive that it would result in Isabella throwing a fit over the matter. So, yes…I wanted to avoid that little scenario as much as possible.

Once I had the plastic torn away from the cardboard material, I retrieved the pink pacifier and held it up to Isabella. She reached out an eager hand, but I immediately pulled mine back.

"Uh-uh…" I muttered.

She furrowed her brow at me and began to whine. I could smell the salt of tears a split second later, and gritted my teeth against the scent before I cut her off and got her attention.

"Isabella, stop it and listen to me," I said in a firm tone.

She tore her eyes away from the pink pacifier in my hand and looked back at me, then began sucking on her pouty lips to calm herself. When I was sure that I had her complete attention, I started to explain.

"Sweetness, when you want your binky, you come to me and ask for it," I instructed. "I'm not going to leave these laying around the house, where you can have access to them all the time. They can accidentally fall down on the floor, and get dirty, or collect dust if they are left sitting out somewhere for too long. I'm going to keep them in their original package, and in a spot that only _I_ can get to. Do you understand?"

She nodded quickly. I wasn't sure whether what I had said had actually registered, or if she was just giving me the response that she thought I wanted so that she could get to the pacifier in my hand faster.

I furrowed my brow. "What are you supposed to do when you want your binky, angel?" I checked.

"Ask for it," she confirmed in a rushed voice, then turned her gaze back the pacifier in my hand.

I nodded. "Good girl," I said softly, then slowly, almost reluctantly, brought the pacifier to her lips.

It was like…I don't know, once her perfect lips actually made contact with the rubber nipple of the pacifier, then there would be no turning back. I would have to deal with the daunting task of weaning her, as well as my Bella, off of them.

This was just another reason why I hated Renee right now. She was a shit excuse for a mother.

My Bella should _not_ be addicted to these things.

Her five year old alternate should _not_ be addicted to these things.

If she had done her fucking job, then I wouldn't have this problem right now. Hell, my Bella wouldn't be broken into three different pieces right now.

_Renee. Will. Pay_ was my thought as I let the pacifier slip into my little girl's softly puckered lips.

Isabella immediately smiled around the pink pacifier and closed her eyes as a look of serenity took over her beautiful features.

"Hmmm…" she breathed out in what I noticed as a sigh of relief.

The pink plastic of the pacifier against her lips began to subtly move then, signaling the sucking motion that Isabella's mouth had automatically begun, as if on instinct.

Her chocolate eyes slowly slid back open and she peered at me with a soft, relaxed gaze. I gave her a small smile and brought my hand up to her rosy cheek, cupping the soft, warm flesh in my cool palm. I skimmed my thumb lightly below her right eye and kissed her button nose, just before bringing her head down to it's spot on my shoulder. She lazily wrapped her left arm around my shoulder and began fingering the fine hair at the nape of my neck. I wrapped my arms around her small frame again, then subtly rocked her in place for three minutes while her warm fingers continued their decent into my hair.

I wanted to enjoy her relaxed demeanor as much as possible for now, because I knew that it wouldn't last. I had every intention to poke a hole in that pink pacifier tonight while she slept. I was not looking forward to the day when all three of them would turn up 'broken', and she would come to me, asking for a new binky. I would have to tell her no…deny her something that she wanted. I recoiled away from the concept that that would mean that I'd be refusing to provide something for her. That's not what this was. I had to say 'no' for her own good on this matter.

I sighed and pushed those thoughts away. I wouldn't have to deal with it for a few more days. For now, I could just enjoy having a happy baby. My little girl was happy.

Isabella's stomach growled then, and I felt the rush of warmth against my neck as her face lit up in a delicious blush.

I smiled and lifted her head from my shoulder, then kissed her rosy cheek. "Baby girl, what do you want for dinner?"

She shrugged, then hooked her index finger around the small handle on the pacifier and pulled it out from in between her puckered lips. "Happy meal," she answered.

"Hmm…" I sighed.

"Icecream," she suddenly changed her mind.

I shook my head.

She squinted her eyes in thought then, and ran the wet rubber nipple of the pacifier along her lips. Side to side, back and forth.

"Umm…macaronies," she decided after a few seconds.

I nodded, glad that I had grabbed two macaroni dinners from the store today. "Okay," I agreed, then gripped my hands around her thin waist and lifted her off of my lap, sitting her on the bed beside me.

I stood from the bed then, and kissed her forehead while she slipped the pacifier back into her mouth. "I'll put a movie on for you, angel…your dinner won't be ready for about thirty minutes, or so," I informed her.

She nodded and kicked her legs out a bit, letting them thump softly back onto the bed frame.

I walked over to our ever-growing dvd collection and started scanning the titles. "Which one?" I asked.

"Toy Story," she mumbled around the pacifier.

I scanned the T titles, and soon came across the Toy Story movie that my baby girl had chosen. I reached my hand out to grab it, but paused when I noticed that there were two.

_Uhmm…_

"One or two?" I asked, my hand paused mid-air.

"One," came her soft reply from behind me.

I immediately grabbed the first Toy Story movie, then powered on the dvd player and the flat screen tv on the wall. After I the movie loaded up, I pressed the PLAY button on the remote, then strolled over to the desk and retrieved Isabella's MagnaDoodle for her, knowing that she liked to draw on it while she watched her movies.

She reached for the pink toy in my hand, and placed it in her lap, then hooked her thin finger around the pacifier's handle and pulled it out of her mouth to say, "Thank you, Edward."

"You're welcome, angel."

She smiled at me and blushed as her stomach gave another subtle growl.

"I'll be downstairs, baby," I assured her.

She nodded and slipped the pink pacifier back in between her lips, then turned her gaze over to the screen. Her hand blindly reached out for the drawing utensil attached to her toy and she started to glide it across the white surface of it, distractedly drawing circular little doodles.

I turned and made my way downstairs, heading for the kitchen. I opened the freezer and grabbed the small red box that read 'Stouffers Macaroni and Cheese'. I closed the freezer door and read the back of the box, wondering what I was supposed to do, exactly. I followed the directions and set our oven to 350 degrees, then I opened the box and took out the tiny tray of frozen pasta. I removed the plastic cover, as instructed, and placed it on a cooking sheet pan. I smiled at how easy that was, and slipped the pan into the preheated oven. Just as I was finishing up setting the timer for forty-five minutes, I heard my girl's frustrated scream sounding out from up above me.

My head shot up and I looked towards the ceiling for a second, before Alice suddenly appeared in front of me. She was shaking her head at me and even rolled her eyes a bit. I tried to concentrate on what she was telling me, but at the sounds of my mate's distress, my instincts caused my senses to immediately zero in on the sounds of her heartbeat. Once I was absolutely positive that there was no cause for concern when it came to her health, I heard my sister's high-pitched voice come back into focus.

Her words were being rushed out at our frequency. She was telling me to stay calm. I pushed her aside with a growl, and started in the direction of the steps that would lead me back to my bedroom. Alice hadn't told me what was going on, she had just instructed me to remain calm. I wanted to know what the fuck was going on.

Just as I approached the slightly ajar bedroom door, I heard the familiar angry stomp of a foot, and a harshly muttered, "You fuckin brat!" before I entered the room and took in the scene before me.

Isabella's pink pacifier lay upturned on the desk, completely forgotten. The desk chair was out of place. Instead of it being tucked into the computer desk, like it should have been, it was rolled over by the closet, allowing my petite mate to stand on it and reach for things that were up on the shelf. I trailed my eyes from the out of place chair, down to the floor, and rested my gaze on the open, upturned tin box laying on the floor, confirming my suspicions. There were beads scattered all along the hardwood floor, and Marie's leather bracelet, that I had bought for her, lay haphazardly off to the side of her cupcake decorated tin box.

My sharp vision caught slight movement then, out of the corner of my eyes, and I watched as Marie quickly stomped over to the bed and grabbed Isabella's MagnaDoodle that lay on the mattress.

I remembered my promise to Isabella then. I had promised to keep Marie away from her toys. I said that if Marie touched her toys, then she would 'suffer the consequences'. I didn't want there to _be_ any consequences, though, so I spoke out in a rush before Marie could seal her fate.

"Marie, no," I said firmly, but she didn't seem to hear me. Or, she chose to ignore me.

Her face was fixed into an angry scowl and tears were streaming down her flushed cheeks. She roughly gripped the handle of the pink toy and gritted her teeth as she screamed in the back of her throat. She quickly twisted her body around and forcefully threw the MagnaDoodle, sending it crashing into the wall with a loud bang. We both watched as it fell to the floor, landing by the computer desk.

"Stop it!" I yelled at her.

_Damn it._

I walked over to her then, trying my best to avoid stepping on the tiny beads that now littered the floor. I wrapped my arm around her tiny waist and picked her up.

As soon as she felt my strong embrace around her midsection, she let out a sob. "Edwaaaaard, my b-box," she told me.

I sighed.

_Fucking hell._

I sat her down on the bed and bent forward a little, putting my hands on my knees so that I could look directly into her angry, defensive eyes.

"I know."

She clenched her eyes shut and balled up her fists, then screamed, kicking her feet out hard, and at a fast pace, against the bed frame below her. I recognized the tantrum for what it was, and reached out to place a firm hand on top of her knee.

"Stop it," I said in a stern voice, then gave her knee a slight squeeze.

She opened her eyes to look at me then, and yelled out, "Sh-sheee, she got up on the fuckin chair and she threw my b-box!" she cried.

"Who did? Isabella?" I asked over her cries, dreading her response, because I already knew the answer.

"Yes! That little fuckin brat -" she paused to take a deep, shaky breath, "She b-broke iiiiit…" she sobbed out.

I nodded.

Marie let out a high-pitched wail then.

"Edwaaaard," Isabella's voice cried out, tears continually streaming down her cheeks.

I squinted my eyes at my little girl, marveling at the quick change during a temper tantrum. "What?" I asked with raised eyebrows.

"Sh-sheee throwed my doo-ooodle," she hiccupped as she continued to sob.

"I know. I saw," I told her.

"She broke it!" Isabella screamed out and started to clench her fists.

_Oh my God!_

I wanted nothing more right now, then for them to be two separate people, just so that I could smack the crap out of them at the same time.

"And what did you do to her box? Huh?" I interrogated.

When she only continued to cry, I answered my own question for her. "_You_ threw her box, so _she_ threw your MagnaDoodle!"

She shook her head, as another sob tore through her throat, shaking her small frame as it did. "Sheee throwed m-my baby dolllllly…" she pointed out and started to wiped at her eyes with tiny fists.

I quickly looked over to the small plastic basinet that usually held Isabella's doll. The doll was laying there, unharmed, so I turned my gaze back to my little girl and gave her a glare.

"Your dolly is just fine, Isabella-" I started in a firm voice before she cut me off with a squeaked out cry.

"Sh-sheee was m-mean and throwed her on the f-floor…" she sobbed out.

I gritted my teeth and exhaled a long breath before speaking again. "I _told you_ that I had handled that, young lady. Marie cleaned up your toys and put them away," I reminded her.

Another scream ripped out of her as she exclaimed, "She started it!" her face becoming red with her anger.

I gripped her arm then, and pulled her off the bed. After I landed a firm swat to her bottom, I told her through gritted teeth, "Get. In. The. Corner."

She knew better than to scream in my face like that.

She continued to cry as she indignantly stomped her way over to her usual time out corner by the computer desk, purposefully stepping on random beads along the way.

I shook my head at her retreating form.

_Naughty girl._

I quickly walked over to the corner and bent down to grab Isabella's pink MagnaDoodle toy off of the floor, where it lay by her feet.

"Not fair!" she stated in a shaky voice when she saw me, then continued to cry.

"Quiet!" I demanded in a curt tone as I walked away from her, back towards the bed.

She only cried louder, but I ignored her as I lay the toy down on the mattress. I inspected the white surface and quickly ran the drawing utensil across it, pleasantly surprised that it was, in fact, not broken. I really thought that it would have been damaged beyond repair with the amount of force that Marie used to send the damn thing flying across the room into the wall.

I turned my attention to the open tin box on the floor then. I walked over to it and picked it up, testing out the latches that opened and closed the special lid. I was relieved when it opened and closed with ease. I grabbed the small leather bracelet and placed it back in the box, then allowed my eyes to scan the floor for the hundreds of little beads that were now scattered across the hardwood floor.

"My box…she fuckin b-broooke it," Marie hiccupped a sob.

I placed the tin box on the bed and went to Marie's side to land another firm swat on her ass. "_You_ threw Isabella's toy up against the wall after I told you not to. You can stand in this corner and have a time out, as well, since you insist on acting like a child," I told her firmly.

She balled up her fists and screamed at the caddy-cornered wall in front of her face. She let out a sobbed, "Nooo…" as she began to stomp her feet repeatedly, so it sort of looked like she was running in place.

I roughly grabbed her arm and spanked her ass again, then leaned in close to her ear and demanded through gritted teeth, "Stop. It," referring to her developing temper tantrum.

She stopped her feet's movement then, but kept up her loud hiccupping sobs and angry screams.

I tried my best to block it out and relax the anxiety that was growing in my chest at the horrible sounds of my mate's distress. I focused on the task of cleaning up the bead mess to calm my nerves while Marie/Isabella served their time out in that corner by the desk.

Four minutes later, all the beads were collected from the floor and placed back inside the cupcake decorated box. I grabbed a few tissues from the bathroom, then sat down on the bed and placed each item on either side of me. Pink MagnaDoodle on my right side, black tin box on my left. I let my gaze drift back over to the corner by the desk, where my girl still stood, bawling her fucking eyes out.

It was clear that both Marie and Isabella were very angry at each other right now and they were both devastated at the idea that one of their possessions had been destroyed.

I wasn't really sure who was actively aware right now, so instead of saying their name, I just called out a simple, "Come here."

She turned around and stomped her way over to me, only coming to a stop when she stood in between my legs and we were face to face. I eyed her flushed, tear stained face critically, before picking up the tissue from my lap and cleaning up all the wet mess for her. She was busying herself by trying to quiet her cries and swallow back sobs. She seemed to be calming down at the sight of either an unbroken MagnaDoodle, or an unbroken tin box, I wasn't sure which.

I decided that I needed to do something so that I could decipher who I was dealing with at the moment, so I balled up the moist tissue, soaked with her salty tears, and grabbed the other one off of my lap and held it up to my girl's runny nose, then instructed gently, "Blow."

She gasped in a breath through her mouth and breathed out through her nose, trying to blow into the tissue as best she could.

Yep, it's Isabella. Marie would have rolled her eyes and taken the tissue from me, insisting that she could blow her nose all by herself.

I balled up the soiled tissue and leveled my gaze with her puffy, chocolate one. "What happened, baby girl?" I asked in a calm voice, wanting to set and keep a calm atmosphere at the moment.

In the past ten minutes, I had heard enough screams and sobs to last me a lifetime. My hyper-sensitive ears needed a break.

Isabella nodded and rubbed her right eye with a small fist before answering me. She gasped in a breath, "I was bein a good girl and watchin my Toy Stories and she was botherin me, and she said that I was a big baby b'cuz of my pink binky with my pretty hearts, but I'm not, I'm a big girl, and then she said that Mom left but that she would come back in _two_ days," she told me, holding up two small fingers for emphasis, "but she's lyin, bein a liar liar pants on fire, b'cuz you said that Mommy was gone away on vacation, and I told her so, but she got mad and said that I'm bein a goddamn liar and I told her nuh-uh b'cuz you said so," she pointed to me, "_you_ said that Mommy was on a vacation and won't come back f'long tiiiime," she said with a shake of her head, "and she yelled at me, and so I yelled back," she said while pointing to herself, "and she said that if I didn't stop bein' a big lyin baby, that she was gonna throw my dolly again, and I said 'you better not' and she said 'ya-huh, I will' and I said 'I hate you' and she said 'I hate you more' and so then I got up on the big chair and it made me really tall, Edward, so that I could reach the _high_ stuff," she said while going up on her tippy toes, "and I got her cuppycake box and throwed it b'cuz she told me that she was gonna throw my baby dolly Haley again, and I showed her by throwin her stuff first," she told me with an adorable nod of finality.

I just slowly nodded at the long…explanation. I hadn't realized that Marie and Isabella talked that much. And it sounded like all of this started because of a misunderstanding on the subject of 'Mom'. Marie views Esme as 'Mom'. Isabella views Renee as 'Mommy'. Yeah…they are confused, to say the least.

I sighed and reached out a hand to squeeze her palm reassuringly. "Sweetheart, you need to realize something very important. When Marie says, 'mom did this', or 'mom did that', she isn't talking about Mommy. Okay?"

Isabella furrowed her brow at me in extreme confusion, and I realized then, that what I had just said didn't make any damn sense.

I chuckled softly. "Okay…"I trailed off and ran a hand through my hair, trying to figure out how to explain this in a simple manner.

"Marie was talking about _my_ mommy, Isabella," I told her, pointing to my chest for emphasis. "_My_ mommy…"

"Huh?" she muttered softly.

I nodded. "She was talking about Esme, baby. Esme went on a trip and she will be back in two days," I informed her, holding up two fingers.

"But that's your Mommy, not mine," Isabella insisted in an uncertain, small voice.

I nodded. "That's right, angel, but Marie calls her 'Mom', and that's okay. She can call her that," I assured her.

"But where's Mommy?" she asked, perplexed.

"Mommy is on vacation, just like I told you, sweetie," I reaffirmed.

Isabella nodded after a few seconds, seeming to realize where they had confused each other's misconception of who 'Mom' was.

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"But I'ma big girl, huh…" she trailed off softly.

I nodded. "Yes, angel."

"Edward, don't lie to the snot-nosed little brat. You know goddamn well, just like I do, that she is a whiny little baby who wants her binky, and her dolly, and her teddy all the fuckin time," Marie said in a mocking, condescending tone.

I glared at her. "Marie you better leave Isabella alone. She is five years old, she is a _little girl_. Of course she's going to have toys, like a doll and a stuffed bear."

"I'm fucking sick of it. This is mine and my Bell's body and now we have to share it with a whiny little baby," she complained.

"I don't care if you're sick of it. Deal. With. It," I replied.

She gritted her teeth and stomped her foot.

I reached around her small form and swatted her ass.

"Ow!"

"I've _had it_ with the tantrums, Marie. Chill the fuck out," I demanded.

She huffed and glared at me while I roughly ran my hand through my hair a few times. I clenched my eyes shut and sighed, then groaned in frustration.

"Look…" I started, and opened my eyes to fix my leveled gaze with my indignant mate.

"What?"

"Did you hear my explanation of why you two got confused on who Mom was?"

She nodded.

"Good. Now, I don't want to hear anymore about you two arguing like two rivaled siblings. It is ridiculous. You two are _not_ sisters, you are apart of my Bella," I pointed out.

She nodded.

"Alright, so fucking work together, instead of against each other! Keep your difference of opinions to yourselves and Marie…" I trailed off.

She looked at me questioningly and raised her eyebrows.

I sighed. "Don't bother, or tease her when she wants to play with her toys," I instructed.

"If you can't say anything nice, then don't fucking say anything at all," I demanded, exasperated.

"Not fair…" she trailed off in a whiny tone.

I felt my irritation spike at the sound of it. "What?" I asked in a curt tone. "What's not fair?" I quickly clarified.

She averted her gaze away from me then, and looked down to the floor. "That we have to share you," she told me in a small, soft voice.

I took a deep breath and sighed, feeling like I might get whiplash due to all of the emotions coursing through me at the moment.

Marie was insecure. Marie was acting out against Isabella because she misses me.

I shook my head at our complex situation, and simply hooked my hands under her shoulders, then brought her small form to straddle my legs and lean her chest up against mine so that I could feel her vital heartbeat against my cold skin.

She wrapped her arms around my neck and squeezed, holding onto me tightly. I ran my fingers through her long, silky hair and kissed her temple.

"I love you," I assured her.

"Love you too," she mumbled back.

"You can come to see me _whenever_ you want, babe," I pointed out.

She nodded and tightened her grip on me, then sniffled.

I shushed her and started caressing soothing circles on her back in between her small shoulder blades, then began that subtle rocking motion, just trying to comfort my beautiful, insecure girl. She had nothing to worry about. I loved her just as much as much as I did Isabella and my Bella. She was being silly in feeling left out all the time.

After a minute, she reached out an eager hand and started reverently running her little fingertip along the tin box at my side.

I sighed.

_Show time._

"No…" I trailed off a bit firmly, before taking that hand in my own and bringing it to my lips to give her knuckles a cool kiss.

"What, why?" she asked quickly with a hint of panic in her voice as she stared at me in confusion.

I gave her a pointed look, before gently scooting her off of my lap and placing her back on her feet, so that she was standing in between my legs again.

"You don't get your box back until tomorrow night," I informed her.

Marie gasped. "What?" she demanded.

I nodded. "Yep, and Isabella is not allowed to play with her MagnaDoodle again until tomorrow night," I added.

Isabella gasped. "Why?" she demanded.

_Heh…which one is going to stick around for the explanation?_

"If you girls can't follow the rules and respect each other's belongings, then those belongings will _go away_," I stated with finality.

Isabella started to cry again. "My dooooooooodle…" she whimpered pathetically at the beginning of her cries.

"And, if you want to cry about it, then you can march right back over to the corner, baby girl," I told her nonchalantly.

She let out another cry as a response.

"Nobody feels sorry for you. You threw Marie's box, so one of your toys gets taken away. Marie threw your toy, so her box gets taken away," I pointed out.

"B-but my doodle…" she sobbed out, and gazed longingly at the pink toy that lay by my side.

"…will be given back to you tomorrow at bedtime," I assured her.

She stomped her foot. "No, noooow…" she whined.

I nodded towards the time out corner, indicating that she should take up any objections that she may have with the wall. I'm sure that it would lend a sympathetic ear, because I sure as hell wasn't going to.

She quieted down at my nod, clearly not wanting to go for another round at a time out session, then looked up at me with pleading, watery chocolate eyes. I shook my head, silently indicating that I would not be giving in. She hung her head in defeat and pouted while sniffling and gazing down at my lap.

The timer downstairs went off then, letting me know that Isabella's dinner was done. I handed Isabella a tissue, "Blow your nose, angel. It's time for dinner."

She reached out her hand for the tissue and wiped her eyes before quickly blowing her nose. She handed me the soiled tissue, then turned on her heel and walked out of the room, her growling stomach advertising how hungry and eager she was for food.

I noticed that Alice was in the kitchen, turning the timer off and preparing my girl's plate for her, so I took the time to grab the soiled tissues that lay scattered on the bed, and take them into the bathroom to flush down the toilet. When I came back into the bedroom, I grabbed the two confiscated items and walked with them to the closet. After moving a few things around, I placed the tin box and the MagnaDoodle up on the shelf, where they would stay until bedtime tomorrow night.

Rain drops started hitting the glass panes of the windows then, and a loud boom of thunder crashed throughout the otherwise silent atmosphere. I heard my little girl's sharp intake of breath at the unexpected noise, from her spot at the dining room table downstairs.

I left the bedroom then, and made my way downstairs, wanting to be by Isabella's side right now so that I could carefully gauge her reaction to the thunderstorm. I wanted to know if the loud thunder and the flashing lightning were going to scare her at all. As I slipped into my seat beside her at the table, I grabbed her hand in mine and gave it a reassuring squeeze. She was nervously sucking on her bottom lip, but otherwise showed no outward sign of fear. I couldn't smell any adrenaline coming from her heavenly scent, either. I breathed a small sigh of relief and rubbed small, soothing circles into her palm for a minute, before breaking contact so that she could pick up her fork and eat her dinner.

I saw that Alice brought out a plate of macaroni and cheese and a juice box, but…nothing else. I sighed, knowing that this wasn't a complete meal. Alice turned and went back to the laundry room, her mind focusing on wanting to fold the clothes fresh out the dryer.

I kissed Isabella's forehead and muttered a quick, "Be right back," then hurried off to the kitchen to toast a slice of bread and grab and assortment of some raw mini vegetables with a small dish of ranch dressing to dip them in.

Isabella smiled at me as I placed the extra items down in front of her.

She swallowed some macaroni, "Edward?"

"Yes baby?"

"Thank you."

"You're welcome, sweetheart."

I waited until Isabella was mostly done with her meal to bring up the subject that I had been dreading since I had put all the groceries away. I had forgotten to pick up some milk. And I knew that she would want milk with her Fruity Pebbles in the morning, so that meant that I had to go back out to the store to get it. The more I thought about it, the more I resolved to just go down to the convenient store here in town, as opposed to the grocery store.

I was actually thinking about leaving her here with Alice, Emmett and Rosalie, so that I could test out my skills of 'leaving my mate behind'.

I had to learn how to fucking grit my teeth and bare it.

I had to learn how to separate myself from her.

I had to learn how to relax, move aside, and let my family help out.

I didn't think that it was going to be this hard, but…it was. It fucking was. And I _hated_ it.

Even now, I loathe the idea of leaving my baby Isabella in my siblings' care for twenty minutes, while I run out to the convenient store for some milk, so that she can have her favorite breakfast cereal in the morning.

But I would do it…I would do it for my Bella. Because that's what she wants. She wants the family to help out more, so that some of the weight will be lifted from my shoulders. But what she doesn't realize, is that whether they help me out or not, the weight will _never_ be lifted.

She is _my_ mate. She is _my_ goddamn responsibility. That's just how it fucking is and she clearly doesn't get that. She doesn't understand vampire nature, and the deeply ingrained bond to one's mate, but as she is not a vampire, I can't exactly hold her ignorance against her.

"Isabella?"

Alice came into the room then, with a big grin on her face. She was happy with my decision to leave Isabella here while I went out to grab the gallon of milk.

"Hmm?" she hummed around a bite of ranch dipped broccoli.

"I have to go to the store, sweetheart. We're all out of milk, and I forgot to get some while we were at the store today," I informed her softly with a shrug.

She swallowed. "We can go when I'm done?" she asked curiously.

I subtly shook my head. "You're going to stay here and play with Alice," I informed her while nodding my head towards my little sister, who was standing off to the side.

Isabella slowly looked in that direction and when she caught sight of the grinning pixie, she gave her a shy smile in return, before abruptly whipping her head back to me, and stating with finality, "Wanna go with you."

I smiled, glad that she wanted to stay with me too. But I realized then, that if she was always acting clingy, then it would only make my task at hand that much harder to achieve. I furrowed my brow at my conflicting emotions.

"Baby girl…" I trailed off softly.

She kept her eyes on me, waiting for me to come up with the words that I was blindly searching for. I sighed after a few seconds and just said, "You're going to stay here."

I immediately smelled salty tears and saw how her bottom lip began to tremble.

I shook my head. "No, angel…no crying. I'll be back in a few minutes, I just don't want to take you out in the storm with me," I reasoned.

"Wanna go _with_ you," she told me, then sniffled.

She had effectively stopped the impending tears though, so I was proud of her for that.

I shook my head. "No, baby…" I told her softly.

She looked away from me and back down towards her plate then, kicking her feet out a bit. Pouting.

I nodded at Alice and got up from the table. It was now or never.

"When you're done with your food, you can play down here, or you can go back up to our bedroom. Your Toy Story movie is still on, on the TV up there, pretty girl."

"Kay…" she mumbled, still staring despondently at the untouched toast on her plate.

I bent down and kissed her temple, fighting the urge to say 'fuck it' and pull her out of the chair to take her with me. "I love you."

"Love you, too," she mumbled.

"I'll be back," I whispered against her warm flesh.

She turned her head to look at me then, and subtly nodded with a sad look on her face. I gritted my teeth at the sight of it, then quickly turned on my heel to exit the room.

_The sooner I leave, the sooner I'll be back._

"Take good care of her," I told my siblings at our frequency as I slipped into the driver's seat of my car in the garage.

"She'll be fine," I heard Alice reassure me just as Marie's voice said, "Wanna go play in the rain, Ali?"

I paused with the key in the ignition to make sure my siblings wouldn't let my girl outside to play in the rain after she had just finished getting over a cold.

Alice laughed, "Nope."

"Whatchya wanna do?" Marie asked.

I pulled out of the garage as they continued their conversation on whether to play with my Bella's Nintendo toy, or persuade Emmett into a game of Guitar Hero.

I drove down the wet roads to the convenient store that was ten minutes away. I rushed out of the car and into the store at human pace, keeping up the charade that I wanted to get in out of the rain. I grabbed the first gallon of milk that I saw, double checking the expiration date, and took it up to the checkout counter. After a quick transaction, I was back in the car and speeding down the road, on my way back home to my mate. I felt the anxiety in my chest lessen as I drew closer and closer to the house. I breathed a sigh of relief at this revelation, and pressed down on the gas pedal even more.

A few seconds later, though, all of the anxiety returned at full force, when I began to detect my mate's elevated heart rate from two miles away, and I could start to hear her screams.

_What the fuck is going on now?_

I floored it and arrived at the front door within thirty-eight seconds. I grabbed the wretched gallon of milk that had caused this whole mess in the first place, out of the passenger seat beside me, then stalked up to the front door.

I opened and closed it with a slam.

"What. The. Fuck." I stated incredulously in a curt tone to the first vampire that I saw, which happened to be Rosalie.

Rosalie took the milk from my hand, and I distractedly handed it over. I could hear Isabella's cries and occasional scream coming from upstairs, but the picture playing out in Rosalie's mind as an explanation made me pause for a second.

"Emmett just sent her to her room…" she started off, then proceeded to tell me in our frequency that soon after I had left, Isabella took over and had decided to be sneaky while I was out. Alice saw her decision to grab the computer desk chair, and take it over to the closet, knowing full well that it would permit her to be able to reach for her pink MagnaDoodle that I had stuck up on the shelf in the closet.

"Alice went up there, and caught her red-handed, so Emmett decided to just send the kid to her room, ya know? But then, why stick her in a room full of her toys?…That's just fucking pointless, if you ask me. Anyway, so we get the idea to put her in the spare room instead…it's empty, it's boring, and it's only for a few minutes until you get back," she shrugged, honestly not seeing the problem with their decision.

And it made sense. Really, it did. And it would have worked…for any child _other_ than Isabella.

_Goddamn it._

"Goddamn it!" I roared out, as I hauled ass up the steps at my natural speed.

I breezed past Emmett in my haste to get to my mate, only to turn around and go right back. Emmett was sitting on the floor across the hall from the closed door of the empty spare room, with a perplexed look on his face. His thoughts were confused. He couldn't understand why Isabella was freaking out to the extent that she was. Apparently, she had been slamming her body against the closed door, and pounding her fists on it, crying and pleading for someone to let her out.

_For fucks sake._

"Emmett," my voice rushed out in our frequency, trying to get his attention.

He tore his gaze away from the white door and looked up at me. He quickly stood then, and we spoke in our natural rushed, hushed tones.

"Dude- I…I, umm. I mean, sending a kid to their room, is fucking _normal_, right?"

I rolled my eyes and nodded.

"So what the _hell_?" he exclaimed, nodding towards the door where my baby's cries never faltered and continued at a steady pace.

"Isabella is to _never_…never, ever, ever…be confined. _Ever_!"

He furrowed his brow. "Dude it's just like those time outs that you-"

"No," I stated firmly. "No, it's not just like those. This is in _no way_ like the time-outs that I have given her. I put her in a corner, or I sit her down in a chair, and I make damn sure that the room we are in always has a _open_ fucking door. She should _never_ be confined, Emmett," I repeated, getting pissed off at my brother and his constant misunderstanding with the situation.

Anxiety gripped me painfully. I could smell the fear-induced adrenaline coming off of Isabella in thick waves.

I growled low in my chest.

Understanding seemed to cross Emmett's features then, and he gasped. "Oh shit, I'm sorry…" he said quickly with heavy remorse.

I nodded at his apology just as a dripping wet, freshly fed Jasper appeared at our side.

"What in the hell…?" he asked, confused by everyone's complex emotions.

"Alice called and I was close by," he told us before Emmett cut him off.

Emmett began to quickly explain the situation and their epic fuck up of putting my abused little girl in confinement as sort of an effort to discipline her until I returned. I was just glad that this conversation had taken place, and that this whole thing had only taken nine seconds to clear up.

I was going to relieve Emmett of the worries that had begun to constantly run through his mind, then…yes, it was just a mistake…no, I don't hate him…yes, I would still let him come around my mate; but Isabella's next words cut me off before I could begin.

"_Es tut mir Leid, Ich werde eine gute madchen_," she stated sadly through her sobs.

"What?" Emmett asked.

"_Es tut mir Leid!" _she screamed out.

I sighed, recognizing the language and knowing that this was traced back to Jim, as well.

"She's telling you that she is sorry," I told him.

"Where the hell did you get 'I'm sorry' from estute-something," he asked.

"It's German," I snapped.

"A fluent dialect of the language, too…" Jasper added.

_Fucking hell._

I wretched the door open then, and immediately enveloped my sobbing little girl in my arms. She buried her face in my neck and clung to me, jumping a little as a crack of thunder boomed throughout the dark room. She lifted her face a little then, and cried loudly in my ear. I shushed her, feeling my anger towards my siblings grow.

Okay, maybe I was a little angry at Emmett, after all. If I had just taken Isabella with me, then none of this would have happened. I gritted my teeth at my own stupidity. I fucking knew the idea of letting them help out was ridiculous.

_Never again._

I tightened my hold on my traumatized baby girl as she began speaking to me through her cries. Her language of choice at the moment seemed to be German, so I tried to concentrate on what she was telling me. The only vampires in my family that were fluent in the language were Carlisle, Jasper, and myself.

"_Edward, er war ein meanie. Er mich in diesem Raum alle von mir, obwohl ich sagte es tut mir leid. er sie nicht hören! Er mir gerade gesagt, ich habe AUFENTHALT IN hier bis sie Hause kam_," she told me through her cries, causing the words to come out with a harsh dialect.

I nodded and shushed her. "Shhh…" I already knew what had happened, and I already knew that she was sorry.

I tightened my grip on her and felt the familiar low rumble in my chest begin, effectively sending out the warning to others of my kind, namely my clueless family, to stay the fuck away. I walked out of the empty room, and passed by my concerned siblings as I made my way down the steps.

My instincts were telling me to get her out. Get her away from the people who had upset her. My protective arms kept her small frame tightly molded against my own as I walked us out the front door. The rain was starting to come down pretty hard now, so I reached into my pocket and grabbed my keys, unlocking my car with the remote. I hurried over to the passenger side and opened the door, then squatted down to gently maneuver my mate out of my arms and into her seat. As soon as I had her safely buckled in, I closed the door, and flashed over to my side of the car, then slid into my seat with eased grace. I started the car and slammed on the gas pedal, backing us out of the driveway.

Isabella reached down into the single pocket in the front of her pretty red dress, only to retrieve that pink pacifier and hold it in a tight grip. She immediately slipped it in between her lips, sniffling and repeatedly mumbling, "_Bedeutet mann_," around it, as she wiped the hot tears away from her frantic and worried eyes with a small fist.

I reached out a tentative hand, and ran my cool fingers through her hair as I made a sharp left turn into the slow traffic. "Shhh…" I tried shushing her again.

I didn't mind her speaking the German language, but frankly, it was freaking me the fuck out. She had obviously regressed, relating being put into that harmless, empty room, with Jim throwing her down into the black basement. She had apologized to Emmett in German, and I guessed that that was expected from her back then. I needed her to come back to me…come back to the present time.

There was no more Jim. No more abuse. No more fucking racist Nazis.

She was safe. I would keep her that way.

She slowly pulled the pacifier out of her mouth then, but continued to keep her head down, focusing her troubled gaze onto her lap. It didn't escape my notice that she was displaying the common _submissive_ position by keeping her head down and avoiding eye contact with me. This only served to piss me off even more.

"_Don Lassen sie mich verletzen_," she pleaded to me softly.

"Never again, baby girl. No one is going to hurt you," I promised.

She nodded and sniffled.

Four minutes later, she finally turned her head to look up at me with a hesitant gaze as I sped towards the highway entrance. "Promise?" she asked in a small voice that cracked.

I smiled, glad that she was looking at me without any incentive, and that she was speaking fucking _English_ again. "I swear it, baby girl," I pledged, then sealed my promise with a cool kiss to her warm forehead.

I leaned over her lap and reached into the glove box then. I snatched up some napkins and handed them my little girl. I watched as she dried the tears from her flushed, rosy cheeks and long, wet eyelashes. She blew her little button nose, next. When she was done, she slipped the pacifier back into her mouth and turned her body towards mine, then gripped my hand tightly in her small, delicate one. I dropped a soft kiss to the top of her head, and let my lips slowly skim along the silky locks, while inhaling her heavenly scent, as she snuggled her side into my arm.

No one would ever hurt her again.

_Never. Again._

_

* * *

_

**~ TRANSLANTIONS ~**

"_Es tut mir Leid_, _Ich werde eine gute madchen_" = I'm sorry, I'll be a good girl

_"Es tut mir Leid_!" = I'm sorry!

"_Edward, er war ein meanie. Er mich in diesem Raum alle von mir, obwohl ich sagte es tut mir leid. er sie nicht hören! Er mir gerade gesagt, ich habe AUFENTHALT IN hier bis sie Hause kam" _= Edward, he was a meanie. He put me in this room all by myself, even though I said I'm sorry. He wouldn't listen! He just told me that I had to stay in here until you got home

_"__Bedeutet mann_" = Mean man

___"Don Lassen sie mich verletzen_" = Don't let them hurt me


	41. Hostility & Empty Threats

EPOV

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

Isabella hooked her small index finger into the pink handle of the pacifier in her mouth and slowly slipped it out from in between her lips. "How big are you?" she asked curiously.

I glanced down at her. "What do you mean, baby?"

She lifted her head from it's spot on my arm and looked up at me. "How big?" she repeated.

_Huh?_

I shrugged and turned my blinker on before changing over to the left lane.

She held up her hand and spread out all five fingers, before smiling and stating proudly, "I'm this big."

_Oh._

I nodded. "Yep, you're five…"

She nodded and a small smile graced her beautiful face. "I'm a _whole hand_ so that means I'm a big girl, huh?" she asked, then flitted her chocolate eyes over to mine and locked gazes with me.

"Yes, angel," I assured her in a soft voice.

"How big are you?" she repeated curiously.

"Well, baby girl…I'm three hands and two fingers," I told her.

She gasped. "_Three_ whole hands?" she exclaimed into the dimly lit car, her already soft voice going up an octave with her inquiry.

I nodded. "Mm-hmm, and _two_ fingers," I confirmed.

"Wow…" she said softly in a wondrous tone.

I chuckled and held her little hand in my own, then placed a cool kiss to her smooth palm.

"You're big like Marie," she told me. I nodded and let her hand go before she added as an afterthought, "But not as big as Bella."

"Nope…not as big as Bella," I agreed.

"She's three hands and three fingers, huh…"

"Mm-hmm, do you know how much three hands and three fingers are?" I asked lightly.

She nodded and smiled. "Yeah, uh-huh."

"How much?" I gently prodded.

"Eighteen!" she told me with a small giggle.

I smiled down at her. "That's right, baby girl," I confirmed, then kissed her forehead, inhaling her sweet aroma. "Mmm, you're such a smart girl," I breathed out in a murmur against her warm flesh.

She hummed in agreement, then put that pink pacifier back in her dress's small side pocket.

I was glad that my little girl wasn't so upset anymore. We had been driving around for almost an hour, and she had sufficiently calmed down. I had distracted her with soft touches, cool kisses, relaxing music, and a fun 'number' game.

I remembered that little piece of information from my Bella's therapy session this morning, and was glad that it had come in handy tonight. Isabella liked adding and subtracting numbers, making puzzles out of them. It didn't escape my notice the adorable way that she chose to count…with small hands and little fingers.

I switched lanes then, and took the exit ramp off of the highway. We were on our way back home now.

I needed to rectify this situation. Isabella needed to know that my siblings are harmless. Well, harmless when it comes to _her_, anyway. And Emmett, as well as the rest of my family, needed to know that if they ever wanted to 'help out' again in the future, then this can _never_ happen again. I figured that they would have known, from hearing certain things in my Bella's therapy sessions, that certain things were obviously forbidden.

For example: Don't hit her, cut her, burn her, pierce her, or bind her, and Don't. Fucking. Confine her, for Christ sakes.

Isabella can _never_ be confined.

Their simple idea of sending her to a room in a small effort to discipline her during my short absence was a fucking disaster, to say the least. It had clearly set her off, and caused her to regress. I mean, she was speaking in a language that was obviously only required of her from that sick fuck, Jim, and she was also displaying submissive behavior with me.

Me…the person that she views as her 'owner'. Submissive behavior that I never wanted to ever fucking see again. Keeping her head down and avoiding eye contact with me…it's disgusting.

My girl subtly shook her head and exhaled sharply, interrupting my reverie. "Edward…"

I stopped at a traffic light and glanced over at her. She had wrapped her arms around her shins, hugging her knees to her chest. Her lips were pursed and was staring straight ahead, her gaze fixed on my black Ipod.

"Yeah?"

"Take me home," Marie demanded quietly.

I bit my lip. "We're on our way there right now," I assured her.

I saw her jaw clench as she swallowed. "Good," she said in a low voice.

It didn't take a genius to see that she was pissed. Her entire body had tensed and her facial expression was stiff, fixed into an angry scowl. Marie reached for my Ipod then, still avoiding eye contact with me. She scrolled through some songs, before finally selecting Eminem's 'Soldier'.

I reached out a tentative hand, placing it on the soft bare skin of her thin shoulder. "Look, Marie-" I started, but she quickly shrugged off my hand and whipped her head around to glare at me with cold, angry eyes.

"Shut the fuck up, and take me home," she demanded through gritted teeth, before turning the volume all the way up and turning her head to stare out the window.

_Great._

And she didn't sing along.

_Just. Fucking. Great._

I sighed, knowing to keep physical contact with her at a minimum until she had calmed her anger. As soon as we pulled into the garage, I turned off my Ipod, and Marie spoke into the tense atmosphere of the small car.

She cleared her throat. "Where were you?" she asked the window in a subdued tone, still refusing to look at me.

"I was at the store," I replied quietly.

"Why?"

"Milk."

I saw in her window's reflection that she had raised her eyebrows incredulously. "For?"

"Fruity Pebbles."

Realization softened her features a bit. "For the baby…" she trailed off, fixing her mouth into a hard line.

"Yes."

She turned her head to look at me then. When our gazes locked, I tried to keep mine as reassuring as possible. Her eyes, in all their chocolate glory, were guarded and angry…defensive.

She blinked once. "Never again," she told me in a firm tone, repeating back to me the promise that I had made to Isabella.

I nodded.

She unfolding her legs from her chest then, and quickly opened the passenger side door, stepped out, and slammed it shut. She began a determined stride towards the door that lead into the house, and I moved quickly over to her side. She didn't acknowledge my presence, though, even though it seemed as though I had suddenly appeared next to her, as if out of thin air. She twisted the door knob, and we entered the house together. Her guarded, angry eyes scanned each room as we entered it.

"I know he's here," she grumbled under her breath.

Alice greeted us at the entrance to the living room. "Hi, Marie. I just-"

"Shut up, Ali," Marie muttered, effectively cutting Alice off, then shoved past her, continuing on her mission towards the stairs.

I stayed by Alice's side and wrapped my arm around her small shoulders in a comforting embrace. She had a hurt expression on her face, due to Marie's sudden rudeness, and I sympathized with her. I had felt the same way when Marie rejected my touch in the car, not five minutes ago.

We both watched as Marie stopped at the foot of the steps and yelled out, "Emmett!"

Emmett, Jasper, and Rosalie came down the stairs at a human pace then. They knew that we were back home and Jasper could tell that Marie was feeling slightly hostile right now…defensive and angry.

Emmett was still a little confused, yet remorseful.

Alice was curious and hurt.

I was anxious and worried.

Rosalie was just irritated.

Jasper began working his magic, trying to slightly regulate everyone's emotions just as they stepped off that final step in the staircase. The three of them stood in front of Marie, ignoring her glare and looking at her expectantly.

No one was intimidated by Marie, but I wasn't so sure that that was what she was trying to accomplish right now. I mean, I could tell that all of this wasn't just for a show…that she wasn't just trying to display how 'tough' she could be.

She was genuinely angry.

She ignored the two vampires by Emmett's side and focused her glare on him, alone. "We need to talk," she told him in a low voice, through slightly gritted teeth.

He shrugged. "About what?" he asked nonchalantly.

She huffed, then jabbed her thin index finger into his hard chest. "Goddamn it, don't play stupid with me, Em - you _know_ what the fuck I'm talkin about!"

She pursed her lips and let her hand fall back down to her side as he held up his big hands in a surrendering gesture. "Alright, alright…" he muttered quietly.

She clenched her small fists and backed up a few steps. "Couch," she said in a clipped tone, then nodded toward the cream colored sofa in the living room.

Alice and I made our way over to the sofa and sat down as Emmett, Jasper and Rosalie began walking over to join us.

Rosalie paused her steps as she walked by Marie, though, and gave my girl a glare of her own.

Marie simply cocked her head to the side, raised her eyebrows, and gave Rosalie a devilish smirk. "Aw. You didn't like me yelling at your man, huh? You gonna fucking do something about it, blondie?" she asked in a sweet, yet condescending tone.

Rosalie gave Marie a small hiss, the menacing sound coming from the back of her throat.

I tensed to the sound of it and growled at my sister in warning.

_Don't you fucking touch her…_

Marie just flashed her a bright smile in response, and quickly flipped her off as she continued to pierce Rosalie with a deadly glare. "Is that a 'yes'?" she asked with mock excitement laced in her tone.

"Girls, that's enough," Jasper stated from his spot on the couch, next to Alice.

Everyone was seated except for the disastrous duo over there, who continued to stare each other down. They always seemed to be at each other's throats.

Rosalie's lip curled into a snarl then, and I stood, ready to knock my sister on her ass if she dared to move one fraction of an inch towards Marie.

Marie rolled her eyes at Rosalie's dramatics. "Are you too much of a goddamn 'tard to actually speak? Can't you make any other noises besides that growling bullshit? If you haven't noticed, you animalistic fucking _whore_, as much as you may want it, you are not getting boned by Emmett right now. You're in the goddamn living room with everyone else, so you can shut the fuck up and stop with all the grunting, groaning nonsense. It's motherfucking sickening," she declared in a curt tone.

"You little bitch-" Rosalie managed to get out before I quickly positioned myself in between her and my mate.

I glared at my sister with black eyes as my chest began to rumble. I parted my lips and let out a sharp, primal growl in warning.

"Shit," Emmett muttered under his breath as he stood up.

Rosalie, fed up and agitated, was not phased and simply growled back, then began lunging for me.

I acted on pure instinct then, and never took my sharp eyes off of Rosalie as I reached my left arm behind me to quickly grab Marie's small hand. I grasped it in a firm grip and ignored her gasp as I roughly pulled her body towards mine. I reached further behind her petite frame and pressed my forearm against the small of her back, keeping the front of her body pressed up against my back, effectively shielding her.

Sure, it only left me with one arm to work with, but that's all I would need when it came to Rosalie. Besides, for some reason, my instincts caused me to do the completely opposite of what I had done on my Bella's birthday. Instead of pushing her away from me, I pulled her to me.

_Huh, weird._

I felt Marie's heart beat against my spine as I reached my free hand out and grabbed Rosalie by the face. My upper lip curled slightly as I let out a snarled hiss towards my hostile sister and wrapped my large hand around her granite chin and jaw. I made sure not to squeeze too hard, and that my palm fully covered her venomous mouth, as I shoved her back with enough force to cause her to skid along the floor until she was about ten feet away from me and my mate.

"Fucking back _down_, Rosalie," I demanded, my voice vibrating slightly with another growl bubbling up, ready to erupt from deep within my chest.

I didn't want to hurt her, but I wouldn't hesitate to, and she fucking knew it.

She cocked her head and hissed at me with glaring, black eyes. I bared my teeth and hissed back, the loud, harsh _kshhhh_ sound of it coming from the back of my throat. I kept my muscles tensed, knowing from her thoughts that she had absolutely no intention of backing down.

She lifted her chin defiantly, planning to lunge for me again, but before she could retaliate, Emmett came up to her side, then started pulling her away from us and over to the couch.

"Calm the fuck down, babe," he demanded.

Alice nodded in agreement. "Seriously. She's a _human_, for Christ sakes…" Alice trailed off as she rolled her eyes at Rosalie.

"I'm just so fucking sick of her mouth," she offered in explanation as Emmett yanked her down by her shirt, to sit next to him on the couch.

I relaxed my posture just as Marie poked her head out from behind my arm and smirked at Rosalie. Taunting her.

Rosalie caught the look and rolled her eyes, then fixed a glare behind me, on Marie.

I loosened my grip on my mate then, and turned around to face her. "Stop it, Marie," I admonished her.

She had every right to be upset, maybe even a little angry, but I would not let her provoke and taunt my family. Yes, I loved her more than anything, but I had to keep my mate in line…not only to maintain a simple peace in the household, but to also reassert my authority as the Male and to teach her to think before she acts, instead of working on instinct alone.

A few seconds later, Marie finally tore her taunting gaze away from Rosalie, to look up at me. She straightened out her features and silently shrugged, then casually walked over to the recliner and plopped down in it, getting comfortable.

Marie looked over to me after a moment, as I was the only one still standing. "Edward, if you're gonna stick around, then sit down," Marie instructed in a no-nonsense tone.

I nodded reluctantly, then took a seat next to Jasper at the corner of the couch, closest to Marie.

She brought her legs up onto the recliner and crossed them, so that she was sitting Indian style, facing us. She put her thin elbows on her knees and placed her chin in her little palms. She stared at all five of us then, letting her critical eyes trail up and down our still forms, before finally landing her gaze on Emmett and demanding, "_Please_ explain this recent fuckery."

He chuckled nervously. He didn't want Marie to hate him because of a simple, little misunderstanding. "Well…" he trailed off, then started to explain that Isabella was caught red-handed trying to go for her confiscated MagnaDoodle, and that they had placed her in the empty spare room as an effort to discipline her while I was away at the store.

He sighed. "…and well, you see, I just didn't understand why she was freaking out and screaming in the way that she was…" he continued, and began to explain that he didn't mean to scare Isabella, or hurt her feelings.

I kept my gaze on Marie and noticed how she started to look bored as he continued to ramble on.

"Uhmm…and then she started talking in this weird language that the guys told me was German, apparently-"

"I don't give a fuck," Marie stated impatiently, effectively cutting Emmett off.

He looked at her incredulously. "Excuse me?"

Everyone, myself included, furrowed their brow in confusion at her. Wasn't that what Marie wanted? An explanation of what had happened?

She lifted her chin a bit and put her hands down in her lap, then sighed. "I saw the whole damn thing," she revealed. "I don't give a shit about Isabella and the damn MagnaDoodle, or the spare room that was 'dark and scary'," she told us, even doing hand quotes around the words "dark and scary".

"Then, what…?" Alice trailed off, wondering what it was that Marie wanted, exactly.

Marie turned her head a bit to look at me then. "You left," she accused, pointing a finger my way, "and went to the fucking store."

I nodded, confirming that fact.

She nodded, then dropped her hand back down to her lap and turned her gaze away from me to look between all five of us again as she spoke. "I hung out with Ali. Then Isabella went for our toys. Then Emmett grabbed her. _Somewhere_ along the way, we were put in danger," she insisted in a matter-of-fact tone.

_Huh?_

Emmett's eyes widened, and he shook his head. "No-"

Her eyes flicked over to him and flashed with anger. "_You_ shut the fuck up," she demanded in a harsh tone through gritted teeth, cutting him off.

They stared at each other for all of three seconds, before Marie leaned forward slightly and chose to quietly voice her silent thoughts. "You know, I really wish that you weren't a tricky bloodsucker right now, because I want nothing more than to just fucking cut you and make you scream for me," she revealed to him in a hoarse whisper.

Rosalie turned her head to glare at Marie, then. "Shut your filthy fucking mouth," she demanded.

Marie straightened her posture back up. "Fuck you, blondie, _you'd_ be next!" Marie exclaimed while turning her cold glare away from Emmett, and fixing it onto my sister instead.

"Alright, this is getting us nowhere," Jasper declared, feeling the increased turmoil of emotions in the room.

"No shit," Marie scoffed and broke away her stare from Rosalie. She looked down to her lap instead, and ran a delicate hand through her long hair in a frustrated gesture.

"He's right," I insisted to Marie. "You and Rosalie just need to fucking cut it out. Stop it. Don't talk to each other for the rest of the night."

Marie looked up towards me then, and pointed an accusing finger towards my sister. "She ran her fuckin mouth first, growling and shit," she insisted.

I shook my head. "That doesn't mean you have to respond to her," I pointed out.

She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. "Whatever," she muttered.

I clenched my jaw, and tried to think of a way to fix this. My siblings never meant Isabella any harm, but for some reason, Marie believes that she was placed in some kind of danger while I was away at the store. How do I get my stubborn girl to see reason? Especially when that girl lacks a certain amount of common sense and acts on instinct alone?

I sighed and resolved to just start by simply stating the facts. "You were never in any danger-"

"Oh my God, Edward…_really_?" she asked incredulously, cutting me off and giving me a disbelieving look.

I furrowed my brow. "What?"

She cocked her head to the side a bit and gazed at me for a few seconds, seeming to think about something. She raised her eyebrows and bit her lip, before stating at a slow pace, "You can keep your goddamn mouth shut because, You. Weren't. Here."

I gave her a slight glare. "Tone down your attitude, Marie," I warned.

Her gaze never faltered. "Don't talk about shit you know nothing about, Edward," she shot back in a casual tone, before turning her penetrating, inquisitive eyes back to my siblings.

She placed her elbows back on her knees then, and let her hands dangle off her lap in front of her. She cleared her throat. "Now, the question is…_when_ did we come to be in danger, and more importantly, _how_?" she asked in a business-like tone, as if she were the motherfucking CEO at the head of a corporate business meeting. Her eyes continually flicked in between the five of us, impatiently awaiting the answers to her questions.

Alice spoke up then. "You weren't in any danger, Marie. You never were. Isabella was just scared because she was sent to a room to wait until Edward came home," Alice explained.

Marie glanced at Alice and shook her head. "Why are you all fucking _lying_ to me?" she asked incredulously.

"We're not," Rosalie quickly insisted.

Marie clenched her fists then, and hissed in a breath through her gritted teeth. It was like the sound of Rosalie's voice grated on her nerves, or something. She reluctantly flashed her eyes over to Rosalie and looked at her in disgust. "Goddamn it. Will you just shut the fuck up? I _hate_ you! You're nothing but a jealous, vain cuntbag, and the sight of you makes me want to puke all over your brand new skeezy dollar store shoes. _Why_ are you even here? This doesn't concern you, so just go the fuck away. Run along, you crusty little whore," she spat with disdain.

"Cocky fucking bitch…" Rosalie muttered under her breath as she shook her head and rolled her eyes up towards the ceiling, trying with all her might to calm her anger and tensed muscles.

Jasper noticed her struggle and began to help out by sending her subtle waves of calm. The last thing we needed right now was another stand-off between a hostile female and a violent, instinctual human. Of course, I would just end up stepping in - again…effectively adding a protective Male to the murderous mix. Things would get deadly.

Emmett wrapped a comforting arm around his mate and soothingly rubbed the back of her neck. "Shhh…" he whispered in her ear.

I found that Jasper was actively working on everyone's emotions right now, with the exception of Marie. He wanted to know exactly what she was talking about, and he wanted her to portray raw emotion with it.

Marie raised her eyebrows at us, and bit her lip, still waiting for what she considered to be sufficient answers to her questions. But after twenty-seven seconds of silence from our end, she slowly shook her head and declared in a curt tone, "You all can kiss my white, naked ass. You know why? Because you will not be seeing my pretty Bell until we get this little matter straightened the fuck out. Isabella and I will keep her so far at bay, that you won't even recognize my girl by the time we let her come back around. She will not be here while there is a motherfucking threat. That is _final_."

I gasped, knowing, but not wanting to believe, that Isabella and Marie had that kind of power over my Bella's mind.

"I know my goddamn instincts, alright? And I know when my Bell is in danger," she insisted, then squinted her eyes at us and took a deep breath. She exhaled it slowly, then said in a calmer voice, "I will ask you one…last…motherfucking time. _Who_ threatened her?"

"Nobody…" Jasper offered quietly.

"Don't _lie_ to me!" her sudden loud voice boomed as she shouted at Jasper and whipped her head around in his direction to glare at him with hardened chocolate eyes.

Marie squeezed her eyes shut then, and tightly clenched her jaw and small fists again. She exhaled a long, shaky breath. She was obviously furious, but was trying her best to reign it in. Her eyes shot back open as she slowly blew out another breath through slightly pursed lips. Four seconds later, she gave us all a short nod, as if to say 'I'm okay now'.

"Okay, let me rephrase this and make it bit easier on you. I know that you simple-minded _fucks_ must be really confused right now," she remarked slowly, and in a condescending tone.

"Watch it, Marie," I warned.

She continued on as if she hadn't heard me. "When I say that my Bell was in danger, I can say it to mean that her, myself, or Isabella was in danger," she explained before giving us all another one of her slight glares. "So, I guess in this little motherfucking scenario, the question would be…who threatened _Is-a-bel-la_?" she asked as her glare landed on Emmett. She continued to stare him down, obviously already knowing the answer to her own question.

After a minute of silence, Emmett looked down at the floor and furrowed his brow, lost in his own thoughts of confusion and remorse. He didn't mean for this to get blown out of proportion. He didn't threaten Isabella, and he was sorry that he scared her. He resolved to maintain these facts and stand his ground. With those thoughts in mind, he subtly shook his head, then turned his determined gaze back to my girl.

"I didn't threaten her…" he stated quietly.

Marie pursed her lips, and her eyes flashed with anger at his whispered statement; confirmation that he was the one who had 'threatened' Isabella.

She placed her feet on the floor and shot out of her chair then, keeping up a determined stride with each and every step over to where Emmett sat on the couch. Without missing a beat, her hand struck out, quick like a snake, and smacked him right across his face.

It didn't hurt him, of course, but the gesture sure as hell did. I registered his hurt feelings the same time that Jasper picked up on them.

Everything happened in a matter of a few split seconds then. Movement and activity flashed all around us.

I saw Alice's prediction and heard Rosalie's thoughts, right before I stood from my spot on the couch, and lifted Marie's stiff form into my arms.

Rosalie's snarl rang out loudly through the large room. Alice quickly launched herself from the couch, and landed on top of Rosalie with a fierce growl, pinning her wrists down in a vice-like grip and effectively holding her back, forcing her to stay in her seated position against the sofa. Rosalie started clawing at the cushions just as Jasper placed an influencing hand on her shoulder, effectively calming her down to an almost sedate state.

I watched the scene play out in front of me with sharp eyes, as I continued to back up until I hit the wall, always keeping my mate safe in my arms and tightly molded to my body.

"What the fuck…" Marie muttered incredulously under her breath. She turned her head to the side then, trying to see what was going on behind her.

Rosalie tore her sharp eyes away from Alice's black, angry stare, only to look over our sister's small shoulder and lock gazes with my own. She began to focus all of her remaining energy into fixing me with a hard glare.

I glared right back and let a slow, menacing hiss escape through my slightly parted, venom-coated lips.

_Try it, bitch. I motherfucking **dare** you._

"Rosie…" Emmett called out to her incredulously, trying to get her attention.

Rosalie stopped glaring at me then, and looked over her shoulder to the sound of her own mate's voice. Her thoughts were beginning to stray away from me and _mine_, and focus solely on Emmett.

With the threat a Rosalie no longer existent, I exhaled a sharp breath and smacked Marie's ass where it sat on my forearm. "What the fuck were you _thinking_, Marie? You don't hit vampires!" I yelled at her in a frantic tone.

She glared at me and reached a quick hand behind herself to rub the hurt out. "Fuck you, Edward. I was _thinking_ that you should do you're motherfuckin job and protect us! _You_ should have been the one to smack him, not me!" she insisted.

I subtly shook my head at her remark, then pressed a cool, single digit to her warm, pursed lips, in an effort to silence her smart mouth before it caused any more fucking drama. "Shhh…" I quietly shushed her.

Jasper lifted Alice from Rosalie's lap then, and held her in his arms. He began focusing only on her now, and putting all of his efforts into calming his wife's frazzled emotional state. Alice was _extremely_ furious with Rosalie right now. She reluctantly accepted Jasper's comforting embrace, but never tore her murderous glare away from our sister.

Alice hissed as her top lip curled up into a dainty snarl. "She is only _human_! She's my _best friend_! How _dare_ you?" Alice screamed at Rosalie in our frequency, right before she tried to launch herself out of Jasper's arms, in an effort to attack Rosalie again.

Jasper was faster though, and quickly caught her, then wrapped a firm arm around her small upper body, effectively forcing Alice's own arms to stay in place by her sides. "Shhh…" Jasper whispered in her ear, and kissed on her neck while tightening his influencing hold on her. He started rubbing her back while continuing to carry her in his arms.

Soon, our gazes locked and he began slowly walking over towards me, while putting some much needed distance in between themselves and Rosalie. Soon, we were standing side by side, both of our stances identical, as we protectively held our mates in our arms.

Marie sighed and laid her head on my right shoulder then, while Alice laid her head down on Jasper's left. Our girls' locked eyes for a few seconds, before I saw, through Alice's mind's eye, that Marie had given Alice a small smile. Alice became encouraged by Marie's friendly gesture, and slowly reached her right hand out towards my mate. I felt it when Marie's left hand reached out the few inches to meet Alice's hand without hesitation. Their pinky fingers simultaneously linked together and their relaxed gazes stayed transfixed on one another. I wanted to believe that Marie was silently apologizing to Alice for being rude to her earlier. I knew from Alice's thoughts, that she was silently promising to always be her friend and protect her.

It was adorably fucking sweet.

Emmett eyed us curiously as he wrapped his big left arm around Rosalie, and tucked her into his side. He subtly shook his head at her and chuckled lightly, trying to ease the obvious tension in the room.

"You overprotective woman!" he playfully exclaimed.

Rosalie rolled her eyes.

Emmett sighed. "I'm fine…" he assured her in a quieter tone, while looking down at her.

Rosalie nodded.

Emmett furrowed his brow at her in confusion, then. "But you already know this," he said softly. Almost uncertainly.

He was right, though. She _did_ know this. She knew damn well that a human could never hurt a vampire. The concept of it was just fucking ridiculous.

As it would turn out, Rosalie was simply extremely frustrated, and fed up when it came to the subject of my mate. After all…my Bella had been stealing all of the spotlight away from Rosalie. Marie had begun to point out all of Rosalie's faults and wrongdoings. Rosalie was tired of hearing about my Bella's horrible childhood, and she cringed every time my Bella spoke to Carlisle in the three therapy sessions that she's had with him. Rosalie was perplexed by the fact that my mate could be three different people at the same fucking time. Rosalie was sick of Marie's rude attitude and smart mouth. Rosalie was jealous that Isabella had excepted Esme as a mother figure, and not her. She was even a bit hurt that Isabella seemed to express hatred towards her, using only her natural hair color as an excuse. Isabella made Rosalie feel ugly, and she didn't like it. I heard all of these frivolous thoughts as they quickly flitted through my sister's mind.

Rosalie didn't consciously voice these thoughts, but as Emmett continued to stare into his wife's eyes, understanding seemed to dawn on his features. He knew his mate like the back of his hand, and he had always known of her selfish, jealous, and vain nature.

So really, it was only a matter of time before she had begun to react like this. It was true that she was weak-minded, but…I mean, I just didn't think that it would only take a week for her to lose her shit. I had actually thought that she was a bit stronger than that, especially since she hadn't really had to deal with anything first hand.

Emmett subtly nodded, his gaze on his wife turning into one of concern. "Maybe we can go on a vacation, or something…yeah, babe?" he murmured in her ear and rubbed his hand along her back.

She gave him a small smile and nodded, relief flooding her thoughts and calming her mood.

_Yes…a vacation_ was Jasper's thought.

_Fucking brilliant, Emmett._

Jasper and I subtly nodded at Emmett then, silently letting him know that we both agreed wholeheartedly with that idea. Neither of our mates were very happy with his at the moment, and Emmett knew that.

Emmett sighed and nodded back to us, confirming that he would taking his stressed wife on a much-needed vacation. "Alright," he muttered quietly, then stood up from the couch.

Rosalie stood as well, and quickly made her way over to the stairs, heading for their bedroom. She wanted to pack and get the hell out of here as soon as possible. She felt suffocated and frustrated. Possibilities of Africa and South America started flowing through her mind, as she began taking the suitcases out of their closet.

Emmett casually strolled over to where Jasper and I stood against the wall, then. I knew from his thoughts that he wanted to talk to Marie, and straighten things out before they left. He didn't want anything negative to cause a rift between him and my Bella, and he knew that if Marie held a grudge, then my Bella would, as well. I nudged her cheek with my shoulder, getting her attention. She lifted her head, breaking her hand's contact with Alice in the process, and looked up at me in question. I nodded towards Emmett, where he stood behind her.

"Marie, I want you to know that all of this is just a huge fucking misunderstanding. All we did was put the kid in a room…and that's it. You were never in any danger, sis, " Emmett assured her.

Marie tightened her hold around my neck and stared into Emmett's genuine eyes for a minute before she spoke. "That doesn't make any damn sense…" she muttered under her breath.

He furrowed his brow. "What do you mean?"

"What I _mean_ is that being put in a goddamn room would not cause my senses to go into overdrive, and push my Bell back. Something happened…Isabella knew that we were in danger. She fucking _knew_ it," she stressed to him in a sure tone.

"But, you weren't in any danger," I insisted.

Marie turned to look at me skeptically then gazed back at Emmett. "Where's Jim?" she asked us out of nowhere.

It didn't escape my notice how she flashed her eyes over his shoulder and scanned the room, giving it a quick once-over, before landing her curious gaze back on Emmett.

_Hell._

I sighed as Alice quietly growled at the mention of _that_ name. Jasper tightened his hold on his mate and shushed her.

Emmett said, "Not here," incredulously, the same exact time that I stated, "Dead," with finality.

Marie looked at us in confusion, and shook her head, her eyes quickly looking back and forth between me and my brother. "No…no, Isabella was all scared and shit. She was almost positive that he was here, lurking in the goddamn shadows, or something," she informed us.

Emmett slowly shook his head at Isabella's assumption, but Marie simply nodded back at him.

"Yes! And that _you_," she put an accusing finger to Emmett's chest, "were a fucking threat because you stuck her in that damn room to wait for him."

Emmett's eyes widened a bit. "I didn't," he insisted indignantly.

"No," I whispered, then tightened my hold on her.

I buried my nose in her silky locks, always methodically breathing in the sweet aroma that permeated her, in an effort to calm myself. I absolutely loathed the fact that Isabella had regressed that much in such a short period of time.

Marie dropped her hand back down to her side then, and casually shrugged. "I was all like, 'Fuck it. Dry your fucking eyes, princess, and _let_ that cock-suckin Nazi come in here. I fucking _want_ him to'. He'd be fun to play with. I'd get a purity knife of my own, and string that motherfucker up by his ankles. Make him my bitch, my pet, _and_ my toy - all in one night. I was looking forward to that shit."

"Mm-hmm…" Jasper nodded and hummed in agreement.

Marie's gaze turned towards me. "But then you came in the room instead, and you took us out of there before I could have my fun," she finished, even sounding a little disappointed at the prospect of me 'ruining her fun'.

_Aw._

I cupped her warm cheek in my cool palm and leveled my reassuring gaze with hers. "Sweetheart, Jim is dead," I said matter-of-factly.

She furrowed her brow, taking in this newfound piece of information. I lightly ran the pad of my thumb along her delicate cheekbone as we stared into each other's eyes. Nine seconds later, she started to slowly shaking her head at me.

"No," she whispered.

I let my hand fall to it's usual position at the small of her back then, and nodded to her. "Yes, baby," I insisted softly.

She shook her head again.

I sighed. "He's dead, and Isabella doesn't have to be afraid anymore. Okay? No one is ever going to hurt her again," I told her with finality.

"How?" she asked quickly with inquisitive eyes.

"He was sent to prison for what he did to Bella. And three years ago, he was raped and stabbed to death in the shower room of that prison," I explained.

She exhaled a shaky breath and continued to stare at me in silence. Finally, she spoke. "That's not fair and Isabella doesn't believe you," she told me in a small voice.

I blinked. "What?"

_Not fair?_

Marie cleared her throat and rolled her eyes in an irritated gesture. "I _said_, 'that's not fair' and 'Isabella doesn't believe you'," she repeated in a strong, louder voice.

I squinted my eyes at her. "Don't be a smart ass, Marie. What I meant to say was, _why_ is that not fair? And why doesn't Isabella believe me?"

"It's not fair because I wanted to gut that motherfucker, and Isabella won't believe you until that fucker's dead, rotting corpse is laid out in front of her, for her own eyes to see."

I nodded, completely understanding Marie's desire to 'gut that motherfucker'. I was disappointed, myself, when I had learned of Jim's quick and easy death. It put a damper on all of my exciting plans. He really did deserve a lot more than just a simple dick up his ass and a few stab wounds to his ribs. After what he did to my precious Bella, how is that fair? Where is the fucking justice?

"That can be arranged," Emmett said, interrupting me out of my reverie.

Both of our eyes trailed away from each other's then, and over to him.

"Huh?" Marie looked at him in question.

"The last part, anyway…" he added as an afterthought.

She nodded once in agreement. "Yeah, okay."

"What?" Alice asked, perplexed by the idea of having to dig up someone's coffin.

Marie looked back towards Alice and gave her best friend a casual shrug. "It's better than nothin…" she pointed out in a light tone.

Alice scrunched up her nose and buried her face in Jasper's shoulder with a squeaked out, "Ew."

"Marie…" I said quietly and calmly, while trying to get her attention again by gently rubbing her back.

Her eyes drifted back over to mine and she bit her lip. "Hmm?" she hummed curiously.

I gradually stopped my hand's slow movement along her spine, then pointedly nodded towards my brother, indicating that she should look at him. She did and when their eyes met, he gave her a small smile.

"Sweetheart, Emmett is _not_ a threat," I said in a firm voice next to her ear, willing her to believe my words.

Her gaze on him turned skeptical then.

_Ugh, difficult._

"It was all just a misunderstanding," Emmett softly repeated his original plea to her.

Her skeptical gaze turned into a cold glare then…her tiny eyelids began squinting around those chocolate depths while her pink lips tightened and pursed, effectively fixing her face into an adorably angry scowl.

_Aw. My feisty little kitten._

I quickly recognized the now-familiar interrogating stare for what it was, and began speaking to Emmett in our naturally hushed tones, warning him to not look away. "She did it with Carlisle this morning, and she did it with me this afternoon. Just hold her gaze, and for the love of Christ, _don't_ look away."

_Roger that_ he thought to me.

I rolled my eyes and watched closely as my mate stared my brother down while I held her in my arms.

I was surprised that she still wanted me to hold her in the first place. I had expected her to tell me that she 'wanted down' by now, but she hadn't. Instead, she tightened her arm's grip around my neck and continued talking with my family. I didn't mind holding my girl like this…no, on the contrary, I actually liked it. It keeps her body close to mine so that I can feel her constant, thudding pulse against my cold skin. The sensation is comforting, not to mention amazing. I can't help but wonder, though…does Marie actually _want_ to be held, or is she only hanging onto me because she believes there is a threat somewhere?

I didn't have time to dwell on it though, because twenty-nine seconds later, Marie broke her intent stare with Emmett and softened her features, then quietly mumbled, "Kay."

I breathed a sigh of relief.

Emmett grinned and nodded at her. "Okay."

She reached out a small hand then, and ran her warm fingertip across his left cheek. "I hit you," she stated simply.

He internally cringed, his sensitive feelings still hurt. I felt bad for him. "Mm-hmm…" he hummed in agreement, marveling at the tingling feeling that my girl's warm finger had left on his cheek.

I thought that she was going to apologize then, but instead she just asked, "Bet you won't make us cry anymore, huh?" her cheeky attitude returned in full force and making an appearance, once again.

He chuckled nervously at her and subtly shook his head. "No…I never wanted any of you to cry in the first place," he assured her.

"Apologize to him, Marie," I demanded in a low voice.

She turned her gaze back to me and furrowed her brow. I gave her a pointed look, letting her know that I meant business, and that she had better apologize to my brother for hitting him, or I'd take her snarky ass back up to our bedroom so that I could demonstrate how much hitting hurts.

She sighed and relaxed her gaze, then tightened her hold on me. She turned her head slightly to look back at Emmett and conceded quietly, "Sorry."

He gave her his signature goofy grin. "Hey, that's alright…" he shrugged it off in a nonchalant, joking manner, but my brother and I knew damn well that he wasn't kidding anyone. His feelings were definitely hurt, but Jasper and I would never emasculate him by telling anyone. I had just wanted Marie to apologize and make things right between them.

Marie nodded and laid her head back down on my shoulder.

"So, umm…yeah, we're gonna head out soon. I don't know how long we'll be gone, though. Probably a few weeks, or something. The old lady needs a break, know what I mean?" he told us with a small smirk.

Jasper and I nodded. "Yeah, after she has some time away, she might feel more comfortable with coming back to the situation at home. You gonna call Mom?" Jasper asked him as he set Alice back down on her feet.

Emmett nodded. "Yeah, I will on our way out. I don't know if we're leaving tonight, or tomorrow, so…" he trailed off as I turned and made my way towards the stairs.

It was getting late and I needed to get my girl ready for bed. Marie stayed silent, and her firm grip around my neck stayed tight while I carried her up the steps to our bedroom. She still didn't want me to put her down.

I finally set her down on her feet once we reached the bedroom, though. I placed her by the edge of the bed and looked down at her, taking in her appearance. Her half-lidded eyes were a bit sleepy and when she exhaled a breathy yawn, her face set into another adorable scowl. I chuckled at her and gently brushed her long hair away from her face, so that I could kiss away the tiny little worry wrinkle that had made an appearance on her smooth forehead. Marie did _not_ like feeling tired.

"Edward, will Emmett come back?" she asked in a small voice as my lips made contact with her soft skin, her warm breath lightly fanning against my throat as she gave another delicate yawn.

"Yes," I quickly assured.

"Even though I hit him?"

I withdrew my lips to look into her sad eyes.

_No one is going to abandon you._

"Yes," I nodded.

She casually nodded and shrugged, obviously satisfied with my answer, then let her gaze drift over to the closet. "My box…"

My eyes followed hers. "Is going to stay up there until tomorrow night," I reminded her.

She gritted her teeth, then looked away from the closet, down at the ground. "Stupid brat," she muttered under her breath.

"Hey, now…" my tone was one of warning.

She looked up at me questioningly.

"No name calling," I told her, feeling ridiculously protective of Isabella. I didn't want anyone calling her 'stupid', or a 'brat'.

She rolled her eyes, then focused her gaze on the TV on the other side of the room.

I nodded. "Why don't you pick out what movie you want to watch tonight, babe? There's a whole bunch that you haven't seen yet…" I trailed off in suggestion.

She shrugged. "Yeah, okay," then casually strolled over to our extensive dvd collection.

While Marie was distracted with the movies, I went over to the dresser and selected a simple pair of white cotton panties, then grabbed a small pad out of the same drawer. With both items in hand, I started on the familiar womanly task of preparing some padded panties for my girl.

As I was tearing away the adhesive strips on what was apparently called, the 'wings', Marie turned towards me with a movie in her hand. "What about this fuckawesome mo-" she started, but cut herself off when she saw what I was doing. She sighed and mumbled a defeated, "Aw, shit…"

I chuckled and tore off the last adhesive strip. "Sorry, baby."

"Yeah, yeah…" she muttered quietly, then turned back around to continue searching through the dvds.

I finished attaching the small pad to the clean pair of panties, then told Marie that it was time for her to take a shower. She readily agreed, taking the panties from my hand, by just her fingertips again, and went into the bathroom. I told her that she needed to dry off and get dressed in there.

"I need comfy-soft pajamas to take in there with me too, then," she told me while she side stepped me and made her way over to the dresser.

She selected one of my white wife beater shirts and a pair of small black shorts that were decorated with white stars. I recognized it from a few nights ago and smiled at her in approval.

She went into the bathroom and closed the door behind her while I walked over to the desk, intent on getting the movie that she had picked out to load in the dvd player. I picked up the small case and looked at the cover. She had selected '17 Again'.

_Hmm…_

I'd never seen this movie before.

_I hope it's not gay_ was my thought as I powered on the flat screen TV and dvd player.

The distinct sound of the shower's spray turning on sounded throughout the room then, and the radio followed soon after. Marie was in there, fiddling with the little boom box that was located on the counter. I smiled, wondering if she would sing in the shower for me tonight. I got my answer three seconds later when her voice belted out to Gwen Stefani's 'Sweet Escape'. I chuckled softly and turned my gaze towards the closed door that separated us. I wanted to be in there with her. I heard when her bare feet stepped into the tub and I noticed the change in the water's sounds when her body was directly underneath the spray. I imagined the warm water coating her long locks, making them all dark and wet for me. I saw in my mind's eye how the tiny water droplets would cascade down her soft, supple breasts.

_Mmmm…_

I swallowed back my lust-induced venom ,then focused on the TV and my task at hand while I listened to Marie's beautiful voice sing along to the radio in the adjacent room. I placed the dvd disk in the small tray, then closed it and waited patiently for the Menu screen to pop up so that I could hit the PLAY button on the remote.

I noticed that Rosalie had followed Jasper's advice and left the house to go for a quick hunt, but that left her packing responsibilities for Alice to handle. Some people might view that as being rude, but it was actually quite the opposite when it came to my sisters.

Alice loves clothes; shopping for clothes, packing clothes, cleaning clothes, wearing clothes…Rosalie knows this, and in an effort to make amends, she is letting Alice take charge in packing their four suitcases. I know for a fact that Alice has a big fucking grin on her face right now, as she continues to fold and arrange and organize and pair off different pieces of clothing together to make unique outfits. She's just…weird like that.

I also know that Alice is keeping her mind highly alert, though. She wants to know the second that Rosalie decides to return, so that she can keep a keen eye on her, and prevent her from coming up to the third floor, where my bedroom is. I know that Rosalie won't start anything, and so does Alice, but that's not stopping either of us from keeping an ear out for her return.

Frankly, I want that bitch to leave as soon as possible. As much as she needs a break from the recent drama surrounding my Bella, _I_ need a break from _her_ selfish ass. I'm tired of her jealous thoughts and hostile attitude towards Marie. She's lucky she's made it a whole week without me smacking the shit out of her.

I'm going to miss Emmett, though. But at the same time, I guess it's a good thing that they'll be away for a few weeks, since Isabella is so completely convinced that he's a 'mean man'. I'm going to have to work on that with her. I gotta look on the bright side of things though; he doesn't have any 'ugly yellow hair', so at least he's got that goin for him. The rest should be a piece of cake.

I heard my girl's high-pitched whimper a split second before I could smell the salt of her tears.

"Wha-"

"Ed-waaard," Isabella suddenly sobbed out.

_What the fuck._

I'm seriously going to get whiplash one of these days. One second, Marie is singing about, "…if I could escape and recreate a place that's my own world, and I could be your favorite girl, forever, perfectly together…" and then the next, my baby is sobbing out my name, crying for me.

"Ahhh-ahhh…ow, it hurrrts!" she yelled into the echoing bathroom. She was crying pretty hard now.

I pushed the wooden door open, but refrained from sliding the shower curtain over. "Isabella, what's wrong?" I demanded to know in a rushed voice.

God, I hated the sounds of her cries. It always filled me with this horrible, gripping anxiety that made me want to climb the fucking walls and rip my hair out. And I'm a vampire, so it's amplified a hundred times, compared to what a human would feel.

"Edward! Ed-ward, make it s-stop," she cried.

I could smell her sweet tang of adrenaline now, alerting me to the fact that my mate was becoming frightened.

_What is she scared of?_

As ridiculous as the concept was, my eyes, on instinct, quickly scanned the room for any type of threat. When I found that, of course, there was none, I shut the radio off and asked, "Make what stop?"

She didn't answer. Instead, she let out this strangled sound that was between a sob and a scream.

I clenched my jaw. "You need to tell me! _What_ needs to stop?"

"W-waaaater…" she sobbed out.

I flung the shower curtain open then, and took in the scene before me. Isabella had pressed her tiny frame up against the cool tiles on the wall in the left corner of the tub, farthest away from the shower's spray. Some of the water was still hitting her lower abdomen and legs, though, and she _really_ didn't seem happy about that fact. Her face was flushed and her jaw was clenched as she continually shuffled her feet on the tub's floor, trying, but always failing, to avoid the pounding spray. Heavy, salty tears coursed down her cheeks, as she turned her face to look at me with pleading, watery eyes.

I quickly reached over to the tub's faucet and shut the shower spray off. As soon as the water stopped, Isabella drew in a shaky breath and continued to cry, but she sounded a little more relieved, then frantic now…if that makes any sense.

I retrieved the white fluffy towel from the rack on the wall then, and wrapped it around my upset, shivering little girl as I stared at her in concern.

"C'mere, baby…" I said softly, as I picked her up in my arms.

She still had shampoo in her hair and I could see the soap suds that remained along her collarbone. She needed to rinse all that off, but I wasn't going to worry about _how_, in particular, at the moment. I just needed to focus on calming her down.

I chose to keep us in the steamy bathroom to make sure she stayed warm, and sat down on the closed toilet lid. I held her in my lap and she sat still, facing sideways, then laid her soaked little head on my shoulder. Her pale, smooth legs dangled off to the side as I shushed her and kissed her wet, rosy cheeks and forehead. Her cries were quieting down now…now that she was out of the water and in my arms. I was still confused, though, as to why she was suddenly afraid of water.

I reached over to my side and ripped off a few squares of toilet paper from it's roll, then held it up to my little girl's nose. "Blow," I instructed gently.

She gasped in a breath and exhaled through her nose, blowing into the small tissue as best she could. I balled up the soiled paper and threw it in the trash, then ripped off another three squares to wipe the salty tears away from her sensitive skin. She sat up straight and looked calm enough by the time I was through, so I chose to voice my question then.

"What's wrong, angel?" I asked in a light tone.

She nodded. "Shower is scary, Edward," she told me in her adorable child-like voice that cracked.

"Why?" I asked, keeping my tone soft.

"B'cuz the water hits you and it hurts," she told me with worried, chocolate eyes.

I just furrowed my brow at her statement.

She seemed to understand my confusion then, because she put her warm little hand to my cheek and looked directly in my eyes, before softly stating, "Daddy," as if that would explain everything. Which, ironically, it did.

The terms 'water torture' and 'breath-play' entered unbidden in my mind, but I quickly pushed those ideas aside.

_No. I don't want to know._

Ignorance is fucking bliss.

I nodded and kissed her little nose. "Okay, baby…you don't have to take anymore showers," I promised.

She nodded.

"Just baths, from now on, okay?"

"Kay…" she mumbled in agreement.

I hugged her tightly to me. "You scared me, angel. You started crying, and I didn't know what was wrong…" I trailed off.

"I'm all better now, Edward," she pointed out, then pressed her warm lips to my cheek for a soft kiss.

I loosened my grip on her and stared into her eyes. "I love you."

She gave me a bright smile. "I love you, too. You're mine," she told me, then leaned forward to give my nose an Eskimo kiss.

_So precious._

I quickly returned the kiss, gently rubbing my cool nose against her adorable little button one. "Mm-hmm, and you are mine," I murmured softly to her.

Isabella broke our nose's kiss then, and nodded in agreement. "Edward?"

"Yeah baby?"

"Can I have my bubbles now?" she asked curiously while letting her gaze trail back over to the tub.

I smiled. "Yes."

"Kay," she said, then hopped up from my lap, being careful to keep the towel wrapped around her small body.

I went over to the tub and turned the water back on, adjusted the temperature, and plugged the drain. As I walked by Isabella on my way to the sink, she asked, "My toys?" with a small squeaked out giggle.

I nodded and smiled, then pulled out her Ariel water doll and soap crayons. I held them out to her, but she nodded towards the tub, indicating that I should put them in there. I did, then grabbed the bottle of bubble bath solution, and measured out a capful, then poured it into the running water under the faucet.

"My bubbles!" Isabella exclaimed excitedly and rocked up onto her tippy toes, as they began to magically appear in the water.

"Yep, there they are…" I said as I twisted the cap back onto the bottle, and put it away in the cabinet underneath the sink.

She bent down and squatted next to the red dress that lay on the floor then, and began searching the single, small pocket with a curious hand. A second later, she retrieved the pink pacifier with a smile on her face, and stuck it in her mouth, then leaned into my side. We stood there in silence and waited for the tub to finish filling with water, so that I could shut if off and leave my baby girl to bathe in peace.

When it was full a minute later, I shut the faucet off. I turned back around to face Isabella and held out my hand expectantly. "Binky," was all I said.

She furrowed her brow at me and whined in the back of her throat, then slowly shook her head while keeping eye contact.

_And, so it begins…_

I raised my eyebrows at her and nodded. "Yes," I insisted.

She stomped her foot.

"Stop it."

"Whyyy…" she mumbled a whine around her pacifier.

I crossed my arms over my chest. "Because I said so, Isabella."

"Mmmm-mmm…" she whined.

I held my hand out again. "Yes."

She hooked her thin finger around the pacifier's handle then, and pulled it out. "I want it," she told me.

I nodded. "I know you do, and you can have it when you're done playing in the bubbles. I don't want to risk it falling out of your mouth, and getting into the soapy water. If you put it back in your mouth with soap on it, then it'll make your tummy feel sick," I explained.

She quickly looked over to the bubbles in the tub, then turned back to face me. "Soapies bad for it?" she asked.

"Yes, angel." I told her.

"Kay," she relented, then placed her pacifier in my upturned palm.

"Isabella, your jammies are on the counter this time, instead of the bed," I told her while pointing to them. "I want you to dry off and get dressed in here tonight, sweetheart."

She nodded.

"Alright, I'll be in the bedroom, angel," I told her as I turned on my heel and left the room, quietly shutting the door behind me.

As soon as I heard my girl's feet stepping into the warm water in the tub, I rushed downstairs in my hurry to find one of Esme's sewing needles. After two minutes of searching her bedroom, the living room, and the kitchen, Alice finally appeared by my side with one in her hand.

She held the silver needle out to me. "Here. There was a hole in Emmett's shirt. It bothered me."

I took it from her and quickly poked three tiny holes into the very tip of the rubber nipple on Isabella's pacifier. "Thanks."

I handed the sewing needle back to my sister, then hurried back upstairs. I placed the now 'broken' pacifier on the nightstand, then pressed the PLAY button on the dvd player's remote.

While I changed out of my now-damp clothing and threw on a set of soft cotton pajamas instead, I listened while my little girl softly hummed, 'A Whole New World' from the Disney movie, Aladdin. Apparently, she was trying to teach her Ariel doll some new songs from different movies and even told her that Princess Jasmine was 'really pretty' and that she thought Ariel and her would be good friends because they were both princesses. I laid down on the bed then, and just listened to my baby ramble on to her bath toys.

I was feeling slightly guilty that I had actually gone through with it. I was really going to sabotage the binkies. I'm such an asshole. She'd hate me if she knew. I sighed at those thoughts and turned my head slightly to focus on the '17 Again' movie that was currently playing on the flat screen TV, hanging on my wall.

Soon, Isabella was finished with her bath, and I told her to sit on the bed while I cleaned up the bathroom and got the hairbrush. She did as she was told, so I went into the bathroom, and after draining the tub, putting the toys away, and cleaning up the usual water mess on the floor, I grabbed the hair brush off of the counter, then made my way back over to Isabella and all of her wet hair.

She was sitting on the bed with the 'broken' pacifier in her mouth, her gaze focused intently on the TV. When I sat behind her and wrapped my arm around her waist to pull her back against my chest, she asked, "Edward, what's this movie?" while pointing a finger at the screen.

"It's called seventeen again," I murmured quietly in her ear while running the first brush stroke through her long, damp locks.

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"I got pretty stars on," she told me while lightly rubbing her palm across the fabric of her pajama shorts.

"I know, baby," I told her, keeping my voice soft.

She was silent for a while then, watching the movie and alternating between having the pacifier in and out of her mouth.

"Edward?"

I gently smoothed some hair behind her small ear, then followed my hand's trail with the brush. "Yes, baby?"

"Emmett goin good bye-byes?"

"Yes."

"Edward?

"Yeah?"

"Is he mean to me?" she asked then.

I paused my brush stroke for a few seconds, before starting back up. "What do you mean, baby?" I asked, almost positive that she had gotten her word-phrasing wrong.

"Is he mean to me…" she repeated softly.

I furrowed my brow. "Um…do you mean, is he _going_ to be mean to you?"

She subtly nodded. "Mm-hmm, yeah. Is he _going_ to be mean to me..."

I trailed the brush through her lock longs, all the way down her back then. "No, baby. Emmett won't be mean to you," I assured her.

"Kay…" she trailed off, then slipped the pacifier back in between her pink, puckered lips.

"Okay," I smiled, glad that convincing her of my brother's harmless demeanor, was a hell of a lot easier than I thought it was going to be.

Eight seconds later, she pulled the pacifier out of her mouth again. "Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"My binky isn't sucky anymore…" she informed me in a light, whiny tone.

I internally cringed. "Aw. What's wrong with it, angel?" I asked, then placed a cool kiss to her soft cheek in a secret apology.

_Sorry, baby._

She shrugged. "Dunno…s'not sucky no more."

I nodded. "It must be broken. Do you want another one from your package, sweetheart?"

To my surprise, she shook her head 'no'. "No, I'm almost ready to go night-night," she informed me, then twisted her upper body around to face me. "S'bad to have a binky in your mouth when your sleepin, huh Edward…"

I nodded. "Yes, it is."

She nodded and handed me the 'broken' pink pacifier, then turned back to look at the TV. "Mm-hmm, b'cuz s'bad for your teeth," she added as an afterthought.

"That's right," I agreed, and reached my hand out to place the pacifier on the night stand, where it would stay until I could get a minute to throw the damn thing away.

_One down, two to go…_

"Yeah. My thumb is for bedtime, huh?"

I sighed.

_It's better than a pacifier._

"Yes."

"Kay."

I finished brushing her hair a few minutes later and placed the plastic brush on the nightstand, next to the pink pacifier. I turned the lamp off so that the only light in the room would be the glowing screen of the TV, then wrapped my arms around Isabella's waist and held her against my chest, nuzzling my nose in her soft hair and slim neck.

"Mmmm…" she moaned sleepily and pressed the back of her head against my chest.

"Shhh…" I shushed her, while turning the volume on the TV down low.

"Edward?"

"What, baby?" I whispered in her ear.

She yawned and tried to twist her body out of my grip. I loosened my arms around her waist as she mumbled out, "Hold me."

When she was facing me, I hooked my arms under her shoulders, and brought her to my chest to straddle my lap. After a minute, she got settled, so I placed my forearm under her and stood with her in my arms, so that I could turn down the blanket. Just as I was getting ready to lay Isabella down, she pouted in my ear.

I took my hand away from the corner of the comforter on the bed, and brought to the small of her back, then started with the familiar soothing circles. "What's wrong with my baby girl?" I cooed in her ear.

"Tummy hurts," she mumbled, her head on my shoulder and mouth next to my ear.

"Ohhh…" I breathed out.

_Damn it._

"Are you hungry, sweetheart? You have to eat with the medicine…" I trailed off.

She nodded her head against my shoulder, so I took her downstairs to the kitchen, and sat her down on the counter. She rubbed her bleary eyes with a small fist against the bright lighting in the kitchen, then watched me as I moved around the room. I grabbing the bottle of Advil out of the cabinet, then poured a small glass of milk.

I set the two items down beside her leg, then placed a palm on either side of her knees and leaned down a bit to gaze into her tired eyes. "Did you already brush all those pretty teeth?"

She nodded.

"Well, after your snack, you need to brush them again, and then it's time for bed."

"Kay," she yawned, and the action made her eyes water.

I straightened up and lightly trailed my cool fingertips along her bare arm. "Okay angel, what do you want to eat?"

"A yummy ganola bar."

"Granola bar?"

"Yeah, a ganola bar," she confirmed with a nod, still mispronouncing the word.

_Adorable._

"Alright," I said, while reaching into the cabinet above her head for the small box of assorted Quaker Oats chewy granola bars. I held it up in my hand and gazed at it curiously. "Which one, do you want, baby girl? S'mores, or chocolate chip?"

"Chocolate chips," she responded, and kicked her legs out a bit.

"Okay," I said, then grabbed a chocolate chip granola bar out of the box and handed it to her.

She ripped the silver package open with ease and bit into the small, rectangular looking…thing. She smiled at me, so I guess it tasted alright.

"Yummy?" I asked, watching her delicate jaw line move as she chewed.

"Mm-hmm," she nodded, then took another bite.

"Good."

She only had one more bite left. I hoped that the small granola bar and glass of milk would be enough to prevent this medicine from causing stomach bleeding ulcers. I had a sudden urge to make a large meal for her to consume, but then quickly pushed that idea aside, labeling it as 'ridiculous'. She would never be able to eat all of it, especially since she's tired. Besides, I heard that it wasn't healthy to eat a big meal right before laying down to go to sleep for the night.

Isabella swallowed the last bite of her granola bar, and reached for the glass of milk.

I grabbed it before she could. "Uh-uh…" I muttered, then handed her two small pills before she could protest.

She placed them on the flat surface of her pink little tongue, then reached for the glass of milk in my hand. I handed it over then, and watched as she took three big gulps. She handed me back the glass, and I poured what was left down the drain, before rinsing the cup out in the sink. When I turned back to Isabella, she had her arms held out to me, wanting me to pick her up again.

I hooked my hands underneath her shoulders and brought her to my chest, seating her on my forearm, then switched off the light to the kitchen as we left the room. Isabella laid her head in it's spot on my shoulder as I started ascending the stairs, back up to our bedroom.

We passed by Alice's seated form at the third story landing along the way. She smiled at Isabella, but otherwise stayed put. She knew that Rosalie would be home any minute now. We both knew that there really was nothing to worry about, but still…my mate was way too important to both of us to take any chances. Rosalie would not be permitted on the third floor of the mansion tonight.

I entered the bedroom and turned left, heading straight for the adjacent bathroom. I sat Isabella down on the counter, and reached behind her small form, retrieving her toothbrush for her. She took it from hand and grabbed the small tube of toothpaste, then squeezed a small amount of blue goo onto the white bristles.

"Edward?"

I tore my eyes away from the toothbrush and looked up at her questioningly. "Hmm?"

"My tooth scrubby had pretty blue sparkles," she told me with an adorable smile.

I smiled back. "I know it, baby. Go on, brush those pretty teeth."

She nodded. "Kay."

She slid off the counter then, and stuck the toothbrush in her mouth, turning around to face the mirror as she did. I watched as she brushed in long strokes and small circles, with a concentrated look on her face, making sure to get her tongue and gums in the process. I was puzzled when she rinsed her toothbrush, then grabbed for the small tube of toothpaste again, only to place another glob of goo on the bristles and start all over, but I didn't say anything. My sharp eyes followed the activity of the toothbrush, fascinated as it glided over the smooth surface of her white teeth with precision and ease. When she went to grab for that same tube of toothpaste again, I placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Twice is enough, baby girl. It's time for bed," I told her.

She stayed facing forward and looked at my reflection in the mirror. "Nuh-uh, Edward," she told me with little white bubbles speckling her lips and trailing down her chin a bit.

"Yah-huh," I insisted in a very Isabella-like fashion.

She shook her head. "Nope, three times," she told me with a certain tone of finality, then picked up the tube of toothpaste, and proceeded to place yet another glob of blue goo on her toothbrush.

"Okay…" I muttered quietly, perplexed that she felt the need to do it three times.

I watched as she repeated the process of brushing her teeth for the final time, and when she was done, she rinsed her mouth out with some water. I nodded, thinking she was done, but then she went and grabbed a small white bottle from the far corner of the large counter, telling me that it was time for a 'gargle-n-swish'. Her words, not mine. She 'gargled and swished' some Crest mouthwash for thirty seconds then, before spitting it out into the sink, and running the back of her hand across her mouth, making a refreshed 'ahhh' sound as she did.

_Aw. She's so fucking OCD, but it's so cute._

I handed her a small hand towel so that she could dry her face _properly_. "Ready for bed, angel?"

She dried her mouth, chin and hands, then set the towel down on the counter. "Yeah," she muttered quietly.

I nodded. "Okay, c'mon…" I enveloped her small hand in my own and led her over to the bed, where the covers were already turned down.

She climbed in and crawled over to the middle of the large bed, and I followed soon after. I brought the blanket around us, making sure to bundle up most of the covers around my little girl. Isabella snuggled her small body into my side, and laid her head down on it's spot in the crook of my shoulder.

The movie was still playing at a low volume, so she turned her attention towards it while sliding her little thumb into her mouth. I wrapped my arm around her, keeping her tightly tucked into my side, and began rubbing small circles into the tensed muscles in her lower back with my gentle, yet firm fingers.

I couldn't hardly wait for my mate's body to stop menstruating. I wanted those wretched cramps to stop hurting my baby girl. I wanted Marie to feel more comfortable when she came around to spend time with me. And, I also wanted to taste my Bella again. I've been secretly craving it for the past few days.

Venom flowed into my mouth as I thought about taking that pretty little bud back in between my lips again. Just the memory of suckling gently on that tiny, pink little clit, and watching as a delicious blush lit my Bella's beautifully fair skin, filled me with such content. I wanted to saturate my senses in her heavenly scent again. I could almost feel her sweet desire begin to coat my tongue, could almost taste it.

_Soon._

Yes. Very soon.

"Mine," Isabella whispered out just before she slipped into unconsciousness.

I reached for the remote by my side then, and turned of the flat screen TV.

"Goodnight, my love," I whispered into the darkness of the room.

I would lay and wait now.

Wait to see who would greet me as the sun rises in the morning.


	42. Breakdown

EPOV

She gasped into the silence of the dark room as her body shot straight up from my chest.

"Shhh…" I shushed her and placed my hands on the small of her back, kneading small circles and coaxing her to lay back down on top of me.

Tears were already coursing down her cheeks, and her breaths were coming out in pants. She kept her frantic, unseeing eyes focused forward…on nothing but the headboard. I gently ran my right hand up along her spine, while keeping a firm grip on her hip with my left.

"Bella, love…baby, come here," I gently cooed to her, placing some pressure on her back with my right hand against her spine, still trying to coax her body back down to mine.

At the sound of my voice, her watery eyes finally shot down and locked gazes with me. Recognition flashed in her eyes and her panted breath began to relax, as I silently nodded to her in encouragement to continue calming down.

"Edward," she croaked, her voice thick with sleep.

"Come here, sweetheart," I whispered to her.

She slowly nodded and lowered herself back down to my chest, nuzzling her cheek with the soft cotton of my shirt. She pressed and snuggled herself back into my enveloping arms. I held her close and subtly rocked us from side to side, all the while lightly humming her lullaby under my breath. She was asleep after twenty-nine seconds, and I breathed a sigh of relief.

That was the third time in the past two nights that she had woken up like that; alarmed and gasping for breath, after fidgeting and mumbling in her sleep. Each time, I gently coaxed her back down to my body and caressed my fingertips along her warm flesh, telling her how much I loved her and that she was safe.

The first time had been last night. Isabella had fallen asleep, snuggled into my side, and three hours later, my Bella had woken up, immensely worried that Emmett hated her. So I guessed that Marie had showed her, in her dreams, what had happened earlier that evening. I tried reassuring her that everything was fine, but she needed to see Emmett herself and talk to him.

"I can't believe Marie did that," my Bella said in disbelief, subtly shaking her head while a tear fell from her left eye.

I cupped her cheek and wiped the tear away. "Baby, it's alright. They are going on vacation, and then they _will_ come back. It's okay. They will come back," I assured her.

She rolled over to the side of the bed and hopped down. "I have to…damn it, I have to make this right. Have to fix this," she said determinedly while heading straight for the bedroom door.

I got up and went to her, grabbing her hand in my own and walking down the steps to the second floor. "Really, love…it's okay."

She didn't respond, because then Emmett was standing in front of us on the steps.

"Hey, shorty…" he said in greeting to my Bella with a soft voice.

He had heard our little talk and knew that my Bella wanted to speak with him, so he left his bedroom to come meet her in the stairway so that there wouldn't be another risk of a confrontation with Rosalie.

"I'm sorry," Bella blurted out, then quickly wiped her eye before another tear could fall.

Emmett leaned forward and hugged her then, lifting her off the ground a few feet before setting back down on the step. "It's okay," he assured her.

"But, I'm _sorry_," my Bella repeated.

He nodded and gave her a small smile. "I know. And I'm sorry too, sis. Rosie should have never taken it to that level. You are a _human_, and regardless of what you or Marie say to her, showing any type of violence towards you is completely uncalled for and unacceptable. She could have kept things at a verbal level. I spoke to her about it and told her so. She's sorry for letting the confrontation get out of hand, but she just needs a break, ya know?"

Bella nodded and after a few seconds looked down at her feet. I wrapped my arm around her and tucked her into my side, then dropped a cool kiss to the top of her head.

Emmett reached out a hand and put his finger under her chin so that she would look back up at him. When she did, he gave her a playful wink. She gave him a small smile, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"Hey, don't worry kid. It's all gonna be okay," he told her.

She nodded and sniffled a bit. "So, umm…I'll see ya soon?" she whispered hesitantly.

He nodded immediately. "Yes. Hopefully _sooner_ than soon," he said with a chuckle.

She nodded. "Yeah, okay."

She suddenly stepped forward and wrapped her small arms around his big waist. His features softened from the stage-smile that he had plastered on his face, in an effort to cheer her up, as he gently returned the hug.

"Bye," she whispered, then released her embrace and leaned back into my side.

He shook his head, "No, hun. It's not good-bye. It's I'll see you LATER," he pointed out with a smirk.

She smiled. "Yeah…I'll see you LATER," she murmured.

He nodded and softly nudged her bare bicep with his rock hard fist. "That's better."

She nodded, as I hooked my hands under her shoulders and lifted her into my arms. She wrapped her arms around my neck, and her legs went around my waist. "Kay, g'night Em."

"Night, sis."

As I started to stroll back up the flight of stairs back to our bedroom, Emmett started to sing out loudly, "Rock-a-bye baaaby, on the treeeee top! When the bow breaks, the cradle will rooooock!"

My Bella laughed next to my ear and it was the most beautiful sound. "Shut up, Em!"

He chuckled, "Got you to smile!" he told her playfully with another wink.

She grinned and winked back.

We entered our bedroom then, and I put her back to bed.

She woke up in the morning in a very somber mood. In fact, she seemed to be withdrawn and detached throughout the entire day. She didn't talk much, and didn't smile at all. Her body had stopped menstruating in the afternoon. She ate all of her food during her three meals and took a short shower before bed. She didn't pick out a movie, so I did. I had picked out Romeo & Juliet, one of her favorites, but she didn't pay any attention to it. While I brushed her hair, she would stare up at the ceiling, and would barely talk to me…only in shy mumblings and whispers, and only to answer a question. I was extremely worried.

When she had woken up two hours ago, it was with a sharp, high-piercing scream as she shot up off of my chest. I knew that she was having a nightmare from her fluttering eyelashes and her body's fidgeting movements. I shushed her as she mumbled, 'Help me, Momma'. Her whispered plea of 'Daddy, stop' broke my heart and angered me all at the same time. I had gotten her to go back to sleep that time, after three long minutes of calming her gasped breaths and wiping away warm, salty tears.

Now it was 4:30 in the morning and I hoped that she slept peacefully for the remainder of the night. I also hoped that she would be more like herself in the morning.

Yesterday had been a zombie-version of my Bella. She seemed constantly lost in her own head, and it was the first time that I had actually prayed for the ability to see into her closed mind. I fucking _prayed_ for it, but of course, God hates me, so it didn't come true.

My Bella sat on the cream-colored couch in the living room, ignored Alice, and gave the coffee table a blank, wide-eyed stare for fifty-four minutes last night. I tried talking to her, but she didn't respond, so I just tucked her into my side and hoped like hell that whatever was happening, would fucking stop as soon as possible.

I thought about calling Carlisle, but I didn't want to interrupt his private time with Esme. And, I didn't want him to think that I couldn't take care of my Bella on my own. Besides, I wasn't even sure there was anything wrong. Maybe she was just sad.

I kept up the subtle rocking motion, effectively keeping my bundled up sleeping beauty, asleep. She looked exhausted. I could see through her long, fanned out eyelashes that slight dark circles were beginning to form under her eyes. Having nightmares for the past two nights wasn't allowing her to get any real rest.

So lost in my own thoughts was I, that I barely noticed our bedroom had been lit up in a naturally subtle glow of light, caused by the sun's morning rays. My Bella began to stir at the sound of the doorbell ringing downstairs. I looked at the clock on the nightstand to find that it was already 8am.

The delivery truck was here with all of the gym equipment we had ordered over the weekend. Alice answered the door, perky as usual, and instructed the delivery men to leave everything on the floor in the living room. They looked at her, their thoughts colored in disbelief at her small size, and insisted that they could carry the boxes to whatever room she needed them in.

She giggled. "Don't worry about it. My big, strong man will be home from work in a few hours," she told them with a smile.

Jasper snickered from his spot in their bedroom at Alice's attempt to get the humans to leave. My girl was stirring against my chest, waking up, and we all knew that her alternates didn't like strangers. These three strange men needed to leave in case my Bella didn't wake up as my Bella.

"Mmmm…" my angel moaned sleepily.

I softly rubbed her back and shushed her as the delivery men finally conceded and began carrying in the remainder of the boxes from their truck.

My Bella's eyelids fluttered open, and she immediately scrunched up her little button nose and clenched her eyes shut against the brightly lit room. I chuckled at her adorable expression and kissed that little nose.

_Mine._

"Good morning, beautiful."

She huffed and slowly slid her eyelids back open. "Mornin…" she mumbled sleepily, then proceeded to roll off of me so that she could stretch her body out, flexing all of her small muscles.

When her tensed muscles finally relaxed out of the stretch, she let out a tired sigh and lay still, in a small heap on the bed next to me. I turned on my side then, and gently swept the hair out of her eyes with my hand, then placed a cool kiss to her forehead.

She stared up at me.

"I love you," I told her.

"Love you, too," she whispered, then slowly sat up and scooted to the edge of the bed and hopped down.

While my Bella was in the bathroom, I went to the closet and quickly got dressed in some casual khakis and a white cotton shirt. I was making the bed when she came out of the bathroom, her hair and teeth already brushed.

I internally cringed at the look on her face. She still had that blank look…like she was detached from the world around her. Her chocolate eyes almost looked hollow.

She walked over to me and immediately began helping me finish making the bed. I insisted that I could do it myself, and that I liked taking care of her.

But she protested.

"I can help," was her barely there whisper.

"Okay," I conceded quietly as we both tucked the white sheet under the mattress on our respective sides.

My hands went on auto-pilot with the blanket and pillows as I watched her. She seemed to concentrate and pay close attention to what she was doing, making sure there were no wrinkles in the gold comforter, and that each pillow was placed in it's assigned spot.

When the bed was made, I asked, "Love, what do you want for breakfast?"

She subtly shrugged, then turned and walked out of the bedroom. I followed her down the steps in silence, keeping my sharps eyes on her feet and her little hand that had a tight grip on the wooden railing. She passed by Alice and the three delivery men without so much as a sideways glance. She went straight for her seat at the dining room table and slowly sat down. She put her left elbow on the table and rested her rosy cheek against her cupped palm, then let out a small sigh.

I took my seat next to her and looked on with concern. "Sweetheart, are you okay?" I asked softly.

"I'm fine," she mumbled.

Always the mumbles and shy whispers now.

_Speak up and maybe I'll believe you._

I decided not to push it and asked, again, what she wanted to eat for her breakfast. Her little stomach was subtly growling at us now, advertising her hunger.

"Fruit and toast," she answered in a soft, monotone voice.

"Okay, how about fruit and toast with _butter and jelly_?" I asked, trying to adjust her meal selection in an effort to add some calories to it.

"Sure," she mumbled with a slight shrug.

"Do you want sliced bananas and strawberries, or just some cut up watermelon for your fruit?" I asked curiously as I rose from my chair.

She shrugged and laid her head down on her now outstretched, bare arm. I stared at her in concern for a second and let my cool hand run through her long silky locks, before I turned and went into the kitchen.

She remained quiet in the dining room while I toasted two slices of bread and cut up half a banana and three strawberries. I fleetingly wondered where Isabella and Marie were, and if they were the cause of my Bella's recently glum mood. Alice joined her at the table while I was trying to _gently_ spread some butter and jam on her toast.

_Gently. Don't rip the bread, Cullen._

"What's wrong, sweetie?" Alice chirped softly in concern.

"Nothing," was Bella's monotone mumble.

Alice chuckled. "Nobody believes you," she said lightly.

Bella didn't respond.

I poured a small glass of milk and took her breakfast out to her. She raised her head from the table top as I set the small plate and glass down in front of her. She gave me a small smile in appreciation, but it didn't reach her eyes.

Alice stayed in her spot, and I took my seat again. We watched in concern, and Bella successfully ignored our stares as she slowly ate her small breakfast in silence.

I sighed as she took her last bite of banana. "Bella, what's wrong?" I asked with a slight desperate tone.

I was getting tired of the scripted answers. She kept repeated 'nothing' and 'I'm fine', when she clearly wasn't fucking _fine_. Her sullen mood and constant nonchalant attitude about it was making me fucking nervous. I wanted the truth, goddamn it. And I wanted her to cheer up. And smile for me. A real fucking smile.

"Nothing."

Another damn mumble.

I ran my fingers through my hair in frustration as she drank the last of her milk. Alice's thoughts were advising me to calm down.

I ignored her and asked my Bella, "Why are you lying to me?" a little briskly.

Bella put her cup down on the table and turned her gaze to stare at me for six seconds, before she abruptly stood from her seat at the table and walked out of the room.

Instead of following her, I leaned back in my chair and groaned in frustration. "Damn it," I grumbled under my breath.

"You need to call Carlisle," Alice told me, then got up from the table and left, as well.

Her, Jasper and I, had to install all of the gym equipment and set it up in the spare room this afternoon. Hopefully my Bella could keep herself occupied while I was busy with that task. I grabbed the two dishes off the table and brought them over to the sink. I didn't bother washing anything, just placed them in there and went back upstairs to my bedroom.

My Bella was standing in the middle of the room, changing out of her pajamas and into some day clothes. She walked up to me in those black star-clad pajama shorts and a white lacy bra, then planted a gentle kiss on my lips. I wrapped my arms around her, keeping her pressed against me and cradled to my chest.

I inhaled her heavenly scent and smiled at the burn in my throat. "Baby, tell me what's wrong," I murmured against the smooth skin of her forehead.

"Nothing's wrong," she quietly mumbled.

"Stop lying."

"Are you gonna spank me?"

I shrugged. "I might."

"I'm not lying," she reaffirmed.

"Then why are you so quiet and sad…and mumbly?"

She lightly chuckled under her breath. Always so quiet. "Mumbly?" she…mumbled.

I kept her in my embrace and started to slowly sway us from side to side.

I nodded and inhaled some more of her lovely scent. "Mm-hmm."

She moved out of my embrace then, and walked over to the bed where her outfit for the day, lay spread out across the blanket. She began to get dressed then, effectively avoiding the subject at hand and distracting me.

But only for a minute.

She slid the small shorts off of her hips and I watched, enraptured as she finished dressing in front of me. She sat on the edge of the bed, clad in only her white bra and panties, and slid her feet into her jeans, then stood up from the bed and brought those jeans up and over her bottom, to her hip bones, and fastened the three buttons in front. She brought the pretty white top over her head and slipped her delicate little arms through each sleeve, then swooped her long hair out of the back of the shirt, letting it frame her face and cup her cheeks, and wave around her shoulders.

All with a blank look on her face.

"Come here," I commanded quietly and crooked my finger at her.

She looked up at me and slowly walked over to me, stopping when we were only inches apart.

I smirked as I embraced her small form in my arms. I kissed her warm lips as I let my hands slowly trail down to her delectable little bottom.

But she only returned the kiss half-heartedly.

I furrowed my brow and withdrew from the kiss, then looked down at her in concern and slight suspicion.

"Bella, what's wrong?" I asked a bit more forcefully.

"Nothin-"

I cut her off with a firm smack to her ass. "Don't lie to me," I warned through slightly gritted teeth.

She sighed and looked up at me with a hurt expression on her face; pretty pouty lips and worried chocolate eyes. It didn't affect me to the extent that she obviously thought it would, though. It was the first emotion that she had shown in _two days_, and I was a bit relieved at the sight of it, honestly. Besides, I had gotten used to that look from Isabella, after all of the times that I've had to spank her this past week.

After a minute, she told me in a soft, monotone voice, "Go sit on the bed, Edward."

I did and she followed after me. She paced the floor in front of me while I sat patiently, well…as patiently as possible, on the edge of the bed, and waited for her to talk. To say something. Anything.

_Okay, anytime now…_

She continued to pace and every once in a while, she would pause to look at me skeptically, then resume her slow steps across the hardwood floor.

After three minutes of this, I ran my hands through my hair, gripping the roots and sighed in exasperation. "Bella, for the love of _god_-"

"Edward, don't interrupt me," she whispered, holding up her little hand.

I let go of my hair and stared at her with wide eyes. "Interrupt you from _what_? You're. Not. Saying. Anything," I said, stating the obvious.

She huffed and stopped pacing then. She turned to face me, but stayed by the window while she spoke in a constantly quiet voice. "Edward, I'm remembering things. Thing that I've told Carlisle about. These thing are not my memories, they are Isabella's. I can't hear Isabella right now. And I can't hear Marie. My head is silent, and while that's always nice, it's also a bit creepy. It hasn't been this silent in a long time, since Isabella went away when I was ten years old. I know they are still there, though. I heard Isabella whisper, 'My Edward' as soon as I opened my eyes this morning, but that's it. Nothing yesterday, and barely anything today. All there are, are these memories. Every single word that I have spoken to Carlisle is beginning to come alive in my mind. These memories are becoming brand new to me again, like it just fucking happened yesterday, and it's almost too much to bear. I'm trying to forget…make myself numb again and block them out, but I'm not doing too good of a job with that. At all. That's my alternates' job, ya know?…Remembering this crap and keeping it from me, so that I can continue on with my mundane existence untraumatized," she explained.

"Baby, I'm sorry…" I whispered, gazing into her sad, chocolate eyes.

She cleared her throat. "Basically, you and Carlisle are getting what you've wanted all along. The wounds of my past are opening back up to be dealt with a heal properly," she said a bit petulantly, then sniffled a bit.

I shook my head. "No, this is _not_ what I want. I don't want you to hurt, love. How do we make it stop? Where the hell are Isabella and Marie? Why aren't they doing their 'job' in keeping it from you today?" I asked, the slight panic leaking into my tone and making my words quick.

She furrowed her brow at me. "Because Isabella and Marie are not real people," she pointed out quietly, as if it should have been obvious. "They are my mind's defense mechanisms."

I nodded. I had forgotten that my girls weren't really 'real'…I just sort of conveniently let that little fact slip from my mind. I'm already so attached to both of them.

I want them to be real.

_Well, they're not. Now, **focus** on Bella._

"Fuck, I am so lucky that I know alllll about this multiple personality crap. I would be so confused and lost if I didn't," she added softly as an afterthought, then walked over to me, wanting my embrace.

I hooked my hands under her shoulders and brought her to sit on my lap. I hugged her limp body tightly to me, then loosened my grip and kissed her temple.

"Do you want me to call Carlisle? Do you remember what your other doctor did?" I asked hesitantly.

She subtly shrugged and kept her gaze on her lap, then spoke in her quiet mumbles and whispers. "Umm, you can if you want to. And the other doctors just put me on some anti-depressants and anti-anxiety meds. It was a very small dose because of my slight weight, since I was just a child. There's no cure for a personality disorder Edward, it's not a chemical imbalance of the brain. Therapy is the only solution to integrate my mind, and there's nothing that Carlisle can give me to 'make the voices stop', per say. Those types of meds are for schizophrenics and delusional people. I've umm…done my research," she informed me with a little nod of her head.

I nodded and pulled my phone out of my pocket, then proceeded to call my father, while keeping my Bella firmly held in place on my lap. I subtly, almost unconsciously, began to rock her while I told my father what was going on.

I told him about my Bella's nightmares…about her glum and somber moods, and he immediately asked me if she had cried a lot. She hadn't, ironically enough, so I told him 'no'. He then basically told me everything that my Bella had just said. He said that her mind had begun the healing process, and that said process requires absolutely no interference from her alternates. I asked why it was just starting up now, and not earlier, since she had already had three therapy sessions with him. He reminded me that either Marie or Isabella had always come into awareness before the session could even finish, effectively saving her from having to relive those memories. They were doing their job, and doing it very well…they were protecting her. And while it may have helped at the time, all it did was prolong the inevitable. My Bella would relive those memories, most likely in violent and vivid flashbacks. He told me to be prepared.

I did _not_ like the sound of that.

My Bella couldn't hear his end of the conversation, of course, so she just kept her head on my shoulder and continued to blankly stare straight ahead. I placed a few kisses to the side of her head and her cheek, trying to offer my angel what comfort I could. After Carlisle informed me that he would be home soon, and that there were already bottles of Prozac and Valium for Bella in his medical bag, located in the study, I hung up and turned my full attention back to my mate.

"It's going to be alright, sweetheart," I told her, hugging her tightly to me again. I wasn't sure who I was trying to convince more…her, or myself.

She subtly nodded and kissed my temple, just like I had done to her earlier. "What are we doing today?" she asked quietly, obviously trying to change the subject.

I gave her a small smile. "Well, sweetness…the gym equipment arrived this morning."

She nodded.

"Jasper, Alice, and I are going to be setting it up next door, in the spare room. What would you like to do while we are doing that?" I asked while I softly rubbed her back.

She shrugged. "I think I want to get out for some fresh air…ride my bike, go for a walk, or something. I don't know," she mumbled.

I subtly nodded, even though I had immediately rejected that idea in my head. "Alright love, I'll come with -"

"Edward, I need some time alone…" she told me softly, then looked up at me apologetically.

"No. I don't want you wandering off by yourself, Bella. Isabella or Marie could come around at any second, and they wouldn't know where they were," I pointed out.

"Marie knows her way around, and I'll bring my phone," she reasoned quietly.

I squinted my eyes at her.

"Call me anytime you want," she shrugged.

We stared into each other's eyes as I begun to shake my head. "I don't know…" I muttered uncertainly.

"Please?" she asked while sucking me into those chocolate depths, effectively bending me to her will.

After a minute, I sighed, then conceded, "Alright."

She got off my lap then, and I whispered to my brother and sister to start without me. My Bella may think that she's going out by herself, but she is sorely mistaken. I _will_ be coming along, like the proud stalker that I am. I can keep my distance though, if that's what she needs…I can give her the illusion of privacy.

"Will you get Marie's Ipod down for me?" she asked while shoving her new cell phone in her jean pocket.

"If you're going to be listening to music, love, then you need to set your ringer to it's highest volume and put it on vibrate, too," I instructed while I walked over to the closet to get Marie's box.

She took the phone back out and did as she was told, while I took Marie's black Ipod and small earphones out of the tin box. I handed it to my Bella, and she stuffed it in her other pocket with a sad look on her face.

She held her hand out to me, so I took it and slowly walked down the steps with her.

"So…are you going to ride your bike, or go for a walk?" I asked curiously.

"Walk," she mumbled.

I smiled and gave her little palm a light squeeze. "It's a beautiful day outside, you should enjoy it."

"Yeah…umm, tell Alice and Jasper that I said thanks. Umm, for setting up the work-out stuff. It umm…means a lot," she murmured shyly, keeping her gaze down on her feet as we walked.

"I will," I assured her, both of us already knowing that my siblings had just heard her murmured "thanks" for themselves, from their position upstairs.

She left out the backdoor and I waited exactly eight seconds, before the anxiety became too much, and I followed after her. I kept as far back as possible, and stayed silent. When she got beyond the confines of our backyard and started heading for the trees, I breathed a sigh of relief and took to the various treetops and branches. I watched as she despondently kicked leaves around, and slowly walked the small trail to the river just beyond the trees behind our house. She picked up a small stick and began breaking off small pieces as her steps continued at an even, slow pace. When there was no more stick to occupy her hands, she took the phone out of her pocket and looked down at the screen, I assume to check and make sure the ringer was still on, and that she hadn't missed any calls.

"He hasn't even called…" she quietly mumbled.

I thought that she was talking about me, but then she added, "Doesn't Charlie even miss me?"

_Aw._

I heard her sniffle as she shoved the phone back in her pocket, then her hand traveled over to the other side of her waist and retrieved Marie's black Ipod. She paused her slow steps and powered the little gadget on, then placed the tiny earphones in her ears.

I heard her sigh then, and I couldn't tell if it was in exasperation, or relief.

"Shut up, you can share," I heard her quietly mutter.

I smiled, knowing that Marie must have made some kind of protest when my Bella started pressing the buttons on her Ipod.

So Isabella and Marie hadn't completely gone away these past few days, but my Bella's mind is keeping them at bay for some reason. It has something to do with this 'healing process' that my father told me about. I don't like the way that he described it…what he said my Bella would go through.

_Violent and vivid flashbacks?_

I found myself growing nervous at her reaction to these things…to the unknown.

My Bella began walking again, and soon she ended up by the river that I had jumped many times in the past…too many to count. She walked to the edge of the grass patches and silently stood there, gazing down into the water. I stayed perched on my branch and prayed to God that she wasn't planning on getting in that water. I would dive out of this tree and into that river with a quickness, just so that I could drag her body out of the current, and bust her suicidal ass. She would not be happy with me.

I breathed a sigh of immense relief when she sat down by the edge of the water, instead of getting in it. She started fiddling with the Ipod then, trying to pick a song to listen to. When she finally settled on the relaxing harmony of 'A Song for Mia' by Lizz Wright, she set it down beside her and lightly combed her fingers through the long, bright green grass blades. Occasionally she would pick up a rock and throw it into the water, trying to land it farther and farther with each throw.

Soon, the song changed, and she laid back on the soft grass. She closed her eyes and relaxed, letting the warm rays of the sun bathe over her beautiful face. I noticed that her cheeks were a little wet.

_What the hell?_

My girl had apparently been crying, but I hadn't been alerted to her distress, because her breathing had remained relaxed, and her heart beat stayed at a normal level. I inhaled then, and there it was…the telltale scent of my Bella's salty tears. I puzzled over this as I gazed upon my angel's delicate and still features.

I remained silent and listened to the lyrics of the current song on Marie's Ipod.

Playground school bell rings again  
Rain clouds come to play again  
Has no one told you she's not breathing  
Hello  
I'm your mind giving you someone to talk to  
Hello  
If I smile and don't believe  
Soon I know I'll wake from this dream  
Don't try to fix me, I'm not broken  
Hello  
I am the lie, living for you so you can hide  
Don't cry  
Suddenly I know I'm not sleeping  
Hello  
I'm still here  
All that's left of yesterday

Tears were steadily streaming out of the corners of her closed eyes by the end of the song, but her features remained calm and relaxed. I didn't miss the sentiment of the song, not at all. It's slow and haunting melody described the situation that she was in, as a multiple personality, perfectly.

_My broken Bella._

I could never even begin to imagine how hard all of this must be for her. Yes, she has survived the abuse, but now she needs to survive the recovery. It must seem like Mt. Everest to her…a huge, impossible feat to overcome, and she doesn't even want to begin the steep trek because she knows that every step of the way is going to leave her beat down and breathless. I silently vowed to help her along the way…_every single step_ of the way, as I gracefully dropped down from my top secret hiding place - the tree branch.

I opened my mind and scanned the area, making sure there were no humans around to see me sparkle on this unusually sunny day, then slowly made my way over to my beautiful girl and sat down beside her. She opened her eyes and kept her watery gaze locked with mine as I gently wiped away her tears and combed my fingers through her long, silky hair. She listened to another song, Stone Sour's 'Bother', while I continued my ministrations. When it was finished, she silently pulled the earphones out, always keeping her eyes on mine.

The tears never stopped, even though she remained silent and her breathing stayed even. I kept wiping each new tear away, making sure to keep my facial expression as reassuring as possible, despite my natural anxiety at the sight and smell of her tears. I held my breath, and that seemed to help some, but not enough to curb my anxiety. Thirty-seven seconds later, she finally lost her perfected composure and I saw how her bottom lip began to tremble. I sighed and lightly ran the pad of my thumb along those pretty, pouting lips, and the next thing I knew, a small sob finally escaped through them.

I nodded. "Okay, c'mere baby…" I said softly, and scooped her small form up into my arms.

I brought her to my chest and she straddled my lap, clinging to me and crying while I quickly gathered Marie's Ipod that still lay on the ground. I kept a firm grip around my mate as I stood and shoved the Ipod in my pocket.

"Close your eyes," I whispered to her, before taking off in a run back to my house.

I ran all the way back to the house, and never broke my stride as I traveled up the steps to our bedroom. I slowed down to a human pace once we were actually in the bedroom, though. I decided to try pacing with her…it always seemed to work with my baby Isabella and Marie. But after five minutes of rhythmic pacing, and rubbing her back, her cries hadn't quieted down one bit.

Alice appeared in the doorway, concerned. I locked eyes with her and she told me through her thoughts that I needed to give Bella a minute alone to compose herself while I called Carlisle. I subtly nodded, not liking the idea of letting my Bella go, but realizing the need for her doctor's advice, at the moment. He had spoken of emotional breakdowns and psychotic fits while I was on the phone with him earlier. I hoped that this was nothing like either of those things, but I couldn't be too sure, and I needed his advice.

I took my Bella to the bathroom and sat her down on the counter, then quickly grabbed some tissues and began wiping away all of the wet mess. I gently ran the tissues along her flushed cheeks, and wiped the bottom of her runny little button nose.

She didn't look at me.

The tears kept up a constant flow, but on a brighter note: her cries weren't coming out in sobs, and I sincerely hoped that it would stay that way.

I kissed her overheated forehead and murmured against her soft flesh, "I'll be right back."

She nodded and rubbed at her eyes with tiny fists.

I left my Bella sitting on the bathroom counter and followed my sister into the spare room, where they were almost finished setting everything up. I exhaled a shaky breath as I listened to my girl's cries gradually quiet down to the occasional whimper with the help of my talented brother.

I took my phone out of my pocket and dialed my father's number.

"Edward?"

"When will you be home, Carlisle? I think that my Bell -" I cut myself off and froze as I registered Jasper's abrupt change in thoughts.

He was picking up an unbelievable amount of sudden terror and anxiety coming from my mate.

His body's subtle shudder was quickly followed by my own, and three seconds later, my girl's shakily exhaled breath broke the eerie silence of the mansion.

"Edward, what's going on?" Carlisle asked, panic subtly leaking through his always carefully composed voice.

"Dad…" I whispered into the phone.

Jasper subtly growled and I cringed as I read the emotions coursing through him. Alice stood off to the side with a worried look marring her tiny features.

"Yes, son, what is it? I'm on my way home, we're about an hour away. What's going on? Is it Bella?"

"I need you," was all I could say right before a blood-curdling scream rang out from the next room. My bedroom.

_My Bella._

I flipped the phone closed and rushed back over to my bedroom, but then froze in the doorway as I took in the heartbreaking scene before me. My Bella…my precious Bella, was huddled on the floor in the corner. Down on her knees, curdled up in a small ball, in the corner.

Isabella's time out corner.

Her entire body was subtly shaking. I saw how her lean muscles in her back and arms constantly twitched and constricted…her breathing was fast and shaky, and her teeth slightly chattered, as if she were cold. She pressed her forehead into the caddy-cornered wall and let out another scream, quickly followed by a loud sob that ripped out of her throat and shook her small frame. She kept trying to curl into herself, pressing her body closer to the wall, in an effort to make herself smaller. She turned her head to the side and pressed her rosy cheek against the cool white surface as she began to cry…and cry…and cry some more.

Anxiety gripped tightly at my chest, adding more emotional turmoil for Jasper to deal with. I hissed in a breath, then immediately cursed myself for the action, for it only caused my emotional state to worsen with the salty-sweet smell of my mate's adrenaline and tears.

_Fucking calm down, Cullen. Bella needs you._

Right.

Another shudder ran through me and venom coated my teeth, but I swallowed it back as I placed myself beside my Bella's small form against the wall.

I crouched down next to her and called out her name, letting her know that I was here. "Bella?"

My voice was hoarse from anxiety and the fear of not being able to handle her mental breakdown, but I tried my best to make it honey-smooth and reassuring for her. It wasn't working that well, though. I really, really needed to calm down. This wasn't about me, it was about her.

_Selfish._

Bella gasped. "Oh, God…" she hesitantly whispered, then suddenly cried out again, as if she were in pain.

_Oh, God._

Her little shoulders raised and she ducked her head, so that they were almost touching her tiny earlobes, as all of the muscles in her body caused her to stiffen and be still.

I placed a hand on her back and she screamed like I had burned her.

"Don't touch meee-eee!" she hiccupped her sobbed plea.

I wretched my hand back to my side, and noticed that the now-familiar subtle growl had ignited in my chest, effectively warning others of my kind to keep away.

_Stay away from me and mine._

I placed my head against the wall, just inches away from her own, and pleaded with her. "Bella, _please_…I need to touch you," I whispered desperately.

She kept her eyes squeezed shut and her jaw clenched, as she quickly shook her head in response and screamed out again.

I unknowingly let out a dry sob at the horrible sounds of my mate's distress, and felt how my eyes immediately begin to burn as they glazed over with venom.

_Baby, please stop screaming._

She began subtly rocking her small body on her knees a bit, but then immediately stopped, and tried to press her body even closer to the wall…like she wanted it to swallow her whole and make all the pain go away, or something.

Jasper entered the room then, and I quickly turned around to instinctually growl at him in warning.

_Stay the fuck away._

I saw his intentions in his mind. He wanted skin to skin contact with my Bella so that his talent would be more effective…she seemed to be withdrawing more and more into herself and it was making his talent slightly difficult to use on her at the moment.

My instinctual, irrational mind didn't give a damn what his reasoning was, though. He was a Male coming after my distressed female and I would rip both his arms off if he tried to touch her. She had said, "Don't touch me." So nobody was going to fucking touch her.

"No," I snarled.

_Mine._

I glared at him, but somewhere, in the back of my mind, I began to register the fact that this was my _brother_, and that his only intention was to help. My mate's followed screams quickly drowned out that voice of reason though, and I took a protective stance over her.

I heard Jasper sigh as he resolved to stay by the door and continue to try and calm my mate as best he could from there.

I scooted in behind my Bella and placed both of my hands on the wall, on either side of her head, effectively caging her against the wall and hovering over her, our skin only inches apart. My main goal quickly became to successfully shield her from anyone else's view and protect her body with my own. I concentrated on the warmth coming off of my Bella's beautiful skin in an effort to try and calm down again…to become rational again. My subtle growl remained low in my chest though, and thankfully, Jasper continued to heed the warning.

My Bella continued to cry, her small body shaking and shuddering from all of the hiccupping sobs erupting from her throat. Twelve minutes later, her strained cries turned into panted breaths and small whimpers under Jasper's influence.

"Momma…" she whimpered pathetically, before gasping for another breath, her chest heaving with the effort.

"Shhh…" I shushed from behind her.

"He's hurts me," she distantly whispered.

"Baby, I'm here," I said, trying to bring her back to the present time.

She clenched her jaw, then made a pained and aggravated moaning sound in the back of her throat. She balled up her fist and punched the wooden floor by her right thigh.

"Edward, it hurts," she told me in a small whimper.

_I know._

I sighed. "Baby, I love you…I'm here," I assured her.

Her breathing gradually accelerated and then she began crying all over again.

"My Bella…" I brokenly whispered as I tried to carefully reach out, and offer my comforting touch again.

But as soon as my fingertips ghosted along her bare arm, she screamed, "No!" and pressed her nose harder into the corner. Goose bumps has erupted on the smooth skin of her bare arms.

I groaned in frustration, but it came out sounding more like a small growl. "Bella, baby…please let me _hold_ you," I pleaded desperately.

Her only response to my plea was louder, hiccupping sobs that wracked and shook her small body.

Her face broke out into a sweat as she fisted her hands into her long hair, twisting and pulling at it. She lifted her face to the ceiling and screamed and cried out in pain. She wailed and whimpered and moaned in sorrow, telling me that she was hurting and pleading desperately for any kind of help.

I continued to hover over her and began lightly humming her lullaby, hoping that the familiar melody would offer her some form of comfort, because she still wouldn't let me touch her.

This was killing me. I wanted to cuddle her all better and she wouldn't let me.

_I want to touch you. I need to hold you._

Two minutes later, Jasper's influence took hold again, and she turned her face down to the floor, gasping and panting for breath. I watched her throat constrict as she convulsively swallowed back sobs.

"Isabella _*gasp*_ h- _*gasp*_ help _*gasp*_ me," she pleaded desperately through her panting breaths.

I stopped humming then, and let out a shaky hiss.

_Why aren't they helping her?_

She slammed her palms against her ears then, and screamed out, "Please!"

After a few bated breaths, she groaned then began bawling in defeat when neither alternate came into awareness to save her from reliving these memories.

Jasper quickly got her emotions under control again though, and she started the subtle rocking on her knees again.

She began murmuring under her labored breaths, "Daddy no, Daddy stop, Daddy I'm sorry…"

I growled. "Bella, Jim's _not_ here," I assured her in the strongest voice that I could conjure up at the moment.

She let her grip on her ears go then, and crossed her arms, tucking her flat palms securely under her armpits and continued to rock herself. Her breaths continued to gasp in and out, and they remained shaky.

Her mumbled words changed to, "Edward help, Edward please, Edward it hurts…" and I hissed at my efforts to restrain my constantly reaching hands, not wanting to cause her anymore pain.

_Fuck._

"Bella, please…please let me fucking hold you. I need to touch you. That's the only way I know how to make it better."

She didn't acquiesce to my request, just quickly whispered, "Make it stop," before a small sob escaped her wet, parted lips, signaling the start of another fit.

"Bella, open your eyes," I suggested softly.

I needed her to open those tightly shut lids and see me and the room around her, so that she could get the fuck out of her head. I needed her to stop seeing and reliving the flashes of terror within her mind's eye.

"Nooo…" she groaned low in her throat and shook her head as her muscles tensed, yet again, and the screams came back for a brand new round.

I growled and reached for her then, unable to take it anymore.

_Fuck this._

I enveloped her small, shaking form in my arms. I ignored her screams and how her body tried to relentlessly squirm out of my embrace, and pressed her back against my chest. My arms crisscrossed in the front of her, forcing her arms to stay at her sides so that she wouldn't try to hit me and end up hurting herself. With my right hand on her thin left bicep and my left hand on her right, I sat her back on my kneeling lap and began rocking her. I ducked my head and placed my chin on her shoulder, my mouth next to her ear.

"My Bella, my beautiful girl…I love you," I softly murmured against the shell of her little ear as she cried and continued to try and twist out of my grasp.

In our position, I felt in my chest and abdomen how the muscles in her small back convulsively tightened, causing constant tremors to run along her spine. I tightened my hold around her small, shaking body and inhaled her scent, adrenaline and all, letting the burn in my throat gradually relax me. I had to quickly calm my own anxiety, so that I could sooth hers. I repeatedly placed cool, insistent kisses on her warm temple, wet cheek, and soft shoulder.

"Bella, sweetheart, open your eyes…come back to me," I whispered in her ear as her body's shakes and tremors began to lessen in my grip.

Her eyes finally popped open then, but her cries never stopped, although they did begin to calm as she took in her surroundings. She let her body go limp and relax against me.

I kept my grip tight around her small frame as I stood from my kneeling position on the floor. I turned my Bella around and shifted her position so that we were chest to chest, instead of back to chest. She clung to me as I walked us over to the bed and sat down, then leaned back against the headboardm always keeping my fragile girl straddled in my lap.

My sweet girl continued to cry and mumbled to me that her throat hurt and that she was thirsty. I silently nodded, understanding her dilemma after all that screaming, and reached for the tissue box on the nightstand. She sat still for the most part while I cleaned up the wet mess on her face and wiped her runny little nose for her.

Jasper, my fucking hero, never stopped sending my girl pure waves of calm and serenity. He was extremely worried about her…hell, we all were. I noticed that Alice was standing behind him, and had been watching our display play out in front of her the entire time.

I registered Carlisle and Esme's presence in the house then. They had just arrived home and had heard the very end of my Bella's breakdown.

Bella began mumbling…almost incoherently, her speech rushed and slurred, about how her Daddy always hurts her and that her Mom never cares.

"Shhh…love, Jim is not your daddy. Charlie is. Never forget that," I reminded her.

She whimpered and sniffled as she nodded in response. "It's confu-uusing though," she hiccupped.

I nodded in understanding then shushed her again. "You need to rest your throat, baby."

She nodded and relaxed into me. I enveloped her in my arms and cradled her to my chest, hugging her tightly to me.

Carlisle appeared in the doorway then, and Jasper and Alice let him by, then turned to go back to the spare room and finish setting the gym equipment up.

Carlisle entered the room with a determined stride. He had a bottle of water, and two pills in his hands. He looked at my Bella in concern for a few seconds, then eventually locked gazes with mine.

_Damn it, Edward. I know that she is **your** mate, but I wish that for once, you would put your pride aside to look after her wellbeing. You should have called me **yesterday**_ his thoughts assaulted me.

I glared at him.

Yes, she is my mate, in other words: nobody else's business but _my own_, but that's not the fucking point right now. My Bella wasn't freaking out _yesterday_, she was freaking out _today_, and goddamn it, I had called him when it started. What more did he want?

"She was fine yesterday, only a little somber and withdrawn. And I called you when her emotional breakdown began thirty minutes ago. I took care of her just fine," I pointed out in our whispered frequency, so as to not disturb my Bella.

_Her 'somber' mood was a telltale sign of her drawing into herself, inevitably resulting in some type of breakdown. If I had known, I would have told you to go into my medical bag and start her on a dose of the meds I have set aside for her. You two could have avoided this entire episode today, and I wouldn't have had to rush home in a panic. I **told you** to call me if you needed anything. **Anything**, Edward. You are not the only one who cares for that girl in your arms. She is like a daughter to me. Stop being so selfish_ he admonished me.

Fuck him and his words of wisdom.

I gritted my teeth. "I wasn't being selfish, father, I was thinking about you…and your trip with your mate. I didn't want to interrupt it, and cause you to come home, when I wasn't even sure if there was anything really wrong. It would have been a wasted trip, for something as inconsequential as her just being sad. A few frowns and a blank stare are no cause for concern and it's certainly not an emergency," I argued back, still in our frequency.

_That's my point, Edward. I wouldn't have come home to a few frowns and a blank stare, I would have **advised** you to go in my damn bag and give her the medicine so all of this could have been avoided!_ he repeated, exasperated.

I clenched my jaw and didn't bother with the fucking frequency anymore. "Just give her the damn medicine and leave us," I demanded quietly.

He was overstepping his bounds, and he knew it. She's _my_ mate, not his. I've never interfered in his dealings with Esme, even when I didn't agree with them. I expect the same courtesy, damn it. It's only fair.

He arched his eyebrow. "Stop growling and I will," he told me.

I hadn't even realized that the subtle growl deep within my chest, barely audible as a purr, was still going...just a rumbling away. I abruptly stopped the silent, yet menacing sound, and he stepped forward with ease then.

Bella turned her head, alerted to his presence by the sound of his voice. She had stopped her cries, to which I was very thankful and relieved. She reached for the bottle of water in his hand and he immediately handed it over. While she put the sport-top to her puckered lips and began sucking down gulps of the clear, cool liquid, he began speaking to her in his usual bedside manner.

"Bella, dear, I have some medicine here that I want you to take," he informed her.

She nodded and withdrew the bottle from her mouth, then held out a small upturned palm to him. He smiled at her willingness to comply.

"I'm sure you're familiar with this whole process by now, so it would come as no surprise to you that, should the need for them arise, I've had a prescription for Valium and Prozac filled for you. It appears as though that time has come, and I am very happy to inform you that we are prepared. You will be taking the Prozac pill once a day, and the Valium will only be taken as needed. Right now, I'd like you to take both of them for me," he told her as he placed the two small pills in her hand.

She silently brought her hand in between our bodies and looked down at the two seemingly harmless pills. I kissed her forehead and gave her a reassuring smile. She looked up at me then, with slightly worried eyes. I cupped her rosy cheek and gazed at her with concern. When she bit her lip, instead of taking the pills, I finally understood what was wrong.

She was nervous about the medicine, but wasn't voicing her thoughts because of her sore throat and her doctor's presence in the room.

I nodded, "Okay, sweetheart…let's try this," I suggested lightly.

She looked at me in question. "What?" she croaked, then cleared her throat.

Instead of answering her, I simply showed her.

I carefully took the tiny pills out of her hand and instructed her to open her mouth. She hesitantly complied, parting her lips for me, and I placed both of the round substances on the flat surface of her pink tongue. Taking the bottle of water out of her grip then, I put the sport-top to her lips and told her to tilt her head back. She did, and when the water poured into her mouth, I lightly ran my thumb along the column of her throat, ensuring that she swallowed the water, along with the medicine.

I put the bottle on the nightstand and enveloped her back into my arms when I was done. I placed feather light kisses on both of her closed eyelids, and then one on her smooth forehead.

"Better, love?"

She opened her eyes and nodded at me. "Mm-hmm," she hummed in agreement, then rested her head on my shoulder.

"Bella?" Carlisle called out to her and sat down on the edge of our bed.

She lifted her head and turned to face him. I kept my arms around her, cradling her chest to mine.

"Hmm?"

He knowingly smirked. "How would you feel about a therapy session today, instead of tomorrow…"

She nodded immediately, almost enthusiastically, to which he lightly chuckled.

"I thought so. Your conscious mind needs a break. Once that small dose of valium kicks in, I can help you out with that," he offered.

She nodded in agreement again, but I tightened my grip on her.

_Therapy…memories…not good._

"Waiting for the medicine to begin working will also give you some time to rest your throat. I know that you must sore and hoarse from all the screaming," Carlisle voiced in concern.

"Thank you…um, talking about the memories in a session always makes me numb to it and allows Isabella or Marie to come into awareness, so that I don't have to immediately deal with certain repercussions. I need a break from all the vivid sensations of my abuse that I've been feeling for the past two days. When I begin to relive some events of my past, all of the emotions become very real and they overwhelm me," she explained quietly in a small voice that cracked.

He nodded. "Not to worry, dear," he assured her while giving her a small smile. "Doctor Dad is in the house."

She murmured, "Doctor dad," with a smile, then laid her head back on my shoulder. I immediately began rubbing her back, and Carlisle got up from the edge of the bed.

"When you're ready, Bella, I'll be in my office," he informed her.

"Alright, thanks," she mumbled, then turned her head to nuzzle her face into my cool neck.

The room fell silent then. It was almost too quiet, compared to the bustling activity that had gone on in it, just forty minutes before.

I kept her held to me and broke the silence by lightly humming her lullaby again, as I stuck my nose in her hair and relished in her heavenly scent. She stayed silent and limp in my embrace as she softly fingered the fine hairs at the nape of my neck.

Ten minutes later, I marveled at her relaxed state and calm breaths, immensely relieved that the medicine had begun to work and that my Bella was going to be okay.

Well, for the most part.

She had therapy next, and I knew that my Bella wouldn't be the one to come back, out of that room. And that was fine, because I missed my little girl, and her sassy sidekick, but that didn't mean that I wouldn't miss my Bella while I was spending time with her alternates.

I also realized then, that when my Bella disappears after each session with my father, that it really is for the best…Isabella and Marie are merely protecting her when they come into awareness directly after therapy. They are allowing her to avoid what had just happened.

Or, should I so…her _mind_ is allowing it? Because Marie and Isabella are not real. They are defense mechanisms.

They are not real...

_Blasphemy._

Nope. I'm not going to think about that right now.

I still have plenty of time to spend with my girls, because my Bella is far from recovery. It will be a long, drawn-out process…and I will get to play with my little girl every single day, and I'll hang out with Marie whenever she wants to come around.

I decided that I wanted to try something, then. Because Bella is _my_ mate and she should be able to talk to me about anything. Anything at all. Yes, I hear every word that she mutters to Carlisle in the study, but I want her to feel like she can talk directly to me about these things, too.

I am the one who comforts her, not Carlisle. I am the one who loves her, not Carlisle. I am the one she belongs to, not Carlisle.

"Bella?"

She cleared her throat. "Hmm?"

"What happened?" I asked her softly. "What did you remember that had you so upset?"

She lifted her head from my shoulder and gazed into my eyes with her half-lidded ones.

_Aw._

I gave her a small smile…she was definitely feeling the effects of the medicine.

I kissed her forehead softly and murmured against it, "Are you tired?"

She subtly shook her head, so I nodded in response. I grazed my nose down her face a bit and gave her a gentle Eskimo Kiss.

She smiled and bit her lip when I withdrew my nose from her adorable one. "You really wanna know?" she asked softly in a much clearer voice.

I smiled. Her melodic voice was clear and smooth again…back to normal.

I nodded. "Mm-hmm."

_If you can tell Carlisle, than you can tell me. Your **mate**._

"Okay," she replied lightly and gave me a delicate shrug. "I was five and it was laundry day. Mom went to the store to get some more laundry soap and fabric softener. Jim was outside hanging the bed sheets on the clothes line in the backyard."

"Okay," I nodded, wondering where this was going.

"As soon as Mom left, he was all up in my face, demanding that I suck his cock," she said nonchalantly.

"O-Okaay…"

"So I'm goin at it, like a fucking pro, by the way," she starts casually and I internally cringe, but keep my facial expression composed.

_Yeah, maybe I don't wanna know._

"But, you see, my mouth is all small, and he is all big, so naturally, my baby teeth scrape along his shaft while he is relentlessly fucking my mouth," she shrugs with a nod.

I exhaled a shaky breath, "Right…"

_Okay, you can shut up now._

"And so, Dad gets all pissed and drags me up to my room, and he does what? Guess," she told me with a slightly raised eyebrow.

"Scarves," I blankly murmured.

"Bingo!" she congratulated me with a small smile. "So, I'm laying on my bed, naked and bound, and Dad and his angel come up with the idea to go out back and get some of the clothes pins he had been using on the bed sheets."

"He's not your dad," I whispered and just barely suppressed a growl.

"Right. Well, he brings six of them back up to my room and pinches them onto my pussy. I screamed. I cried. It hurt to walk and sit for a week after that, sbecause those evil contraptions left little bruises where they were attached to my skin."

I growled then. I couldn't help it, but at least I kept my mouth shut to muffle the sound.

Okay, so maybe there's a reason why Carlisle is her doctor, and I'm not.

_Yes. To keep what fucking sanity I have left, intact._

"And your mother?" I questioned.

She nodded and scratched her little button nose with a small index finger. "Yeah, Jim took the pins off when he heard her car door slam."

I raised my eyebrows expectantly. "She didn't go to you…even though you were screaming and crying up in your room?"

She furrowed her brow at me then. "Umm, no…she had laundry to do," she stated, as if it should have been obvious.

I nodded slowly in understanding.

_Neglectful whore._

I am going to kill Renee.

* * *

A/N:

The song in this chappy is 'Hello' by Evanescance

Mmmmmmm, reviews are so fucking pretty.

Leave me one

xoxo


	43. Lifesaver

A/N:

Bella's memories/flashbacks will be written in italics.

Kay, back to story time kids!

~ ENJOY :)

* * *

BPOV

"You shouldn't worry so much, Bella. Now that you have started on a regimen of the anti-depressant, you should be feeling a lot better. You know, not so sad anymore. I really wish you would have told me that you were feeling 'numb', as you put it. I would have started your medication before I left on my trip," Carlisle informed me.

I looked down and focused on Edward's arm, currently wrapped around my waist. "Sorry…" I mumbled sheepishly.

He shook his head and gave me a reassuring smile. "No need to apologize, dear."

I looked back up at his reassurance.

"All is taken care of now. As I said…Doctor Dad is in the house," he reminded me with a smirk.

I lightly chuckled. "You like that don't you?" I asked, fighting a smile.

"What?" he asked casually, amusement lighting up his gold eyes.

I smiled. "Doctor Dad…"

He gave me a bright smile then, and agreed. "Yes…yes, I do."

I nodded and felt Edward's cool lips behind my ear then. "Bella, I don't think I can leave you…" he whispered in my ear.

I frowned and started running my palm up and down the forearm currently pressing into my stomach, just trying to offer him some form of comfort, or reassurance. I leaned my head back against his shoulder, and turned to face him. After kissing his neck, jaw line and cheek, he turned his head to look at me. He had a small smile on his face, but his golden gaze remained worried.

I bit my lip and furrowed my brow at his expression. "I'll be okay," I whispered back to him with a small nod.

_I'm sorry, Edward. Sorry that I can't keep my emotions under control. Sorry that I scared you earlier. Sorry that you have to deal with a crazy girlfriend._

He subtly shook his head and put his mouth next to my ear again. "I need to hold onto you," he told me, then quickly added, "Just a little while longer."

I nodded. "Okay, honey…I love you," I whispered in a strained voice that cracked.

It was killing me that I had made him look like that. Like a lost, hurt and confused little boy who refused to let go of his security blanket…me.

_Aw. My big, strong vampire man. I'll cuddle you_ I thought as I gave his forearm another reassuring squeeze and caress.

To say that he was upset by my earlier breakdown would be a major understatement. He was downright traumatized. So now, here we sit - in Carlisle's study. I am ready for a therapy session, but Edward remains un-ready to let me go. He absolutely refuses to, so instead, he is sitting in my usual spot, while I sit on his lap. Like a five year old.

He cupped my cheek and looked at me adoringly. "I love you too, sweetheart. So much," he said, then kissed my forehead and minutely tightened his hold around my waist.

"Bella, you should probably know that if you experience another breakdown in the future, it won't be quite as disturbing, or violent. The Prozac will help you deal with your emotions, and if it should get out of hand again, that is what the Valium is for," he informed me.

I looked back at Carlisle and nodded, glad that he had been prepared with those magical little pills that had incidentally saved the day from my emotionally crazy ass.

"How are you feeling now?" he asked with a hint of concern.

"Better…calmer. I'm still remembering things, though. My mind seems overloaded with _all kinds_ of memories right now. It's making me fucking antsy. I need to let them out…and consequentially, that means letting either Isabella or Marie out. Which is perfectly fine, I want…no, I need to hear them again. I'm starting to get anxious at the silence in my head. It's fucking unnerving," I concluded with a nod.

"Do you not hear them at all?" he asked curiously.

I subtly shook my head and lightly ran my fingertips around the top of Edward's wrist. "Um, no…well, this morning, I did. Yeah, uhh…when I woke up. I opened my eyes and the first thing I saw was Edward. Isabella whispered, "My Edward," but that was it. Oh yeah! Umm…and then, when I was walking through the woods to go down to the river…" I trailed off.

Carlisle nodded for me to continue. Edward kissed my cheek.

"Umm, I had Marie's Ipod with me. When I was turning it on, she told me, 'Pretty Bell, that's my fuckin toy. You can't play with it.' I told her to shut up and that she needs to learn how to share."

"I see. And that's it? Nothing yesterday?"

I nodded, clearing my throat. "That's it…yesterday, it was like they didn't even exist. Without their voices and internal conversations, with either, me, or each other, it left a lot of room for memories to start flooding my mind. It was very…umm, disturbing," I finished quietly, frowning at how much yesterday sucked.

Edward's hand on my hip started to subtly move then, lightly squeezing and rubbing my small, fragile hip bone. His cool fingertips slowly snuck up underneath the fabric of my shirt and he started lightly tracing a tiny circle around my bellybutton with his index finger. My stomach muscles trembled and I turned my head to look at him questioningly.

_Your dad is right there_ I thought while fighting a giggle.

He gave me an innocent look and smiled at my suppressed grin, then used his other hand to start playing with my hair…running his fingers through the long strands, and gently pressing the cool tip of his nose to my scalp and inhaling. I smiled then, I couldn't help it.

_You're such a weirdo, but I love you._

His slow finger on my bellybutton suddenly became five tickling fingers on my stomach and sides, and my giggles finally broke free. He was relentless and kept it up until I was breathless from my laughter and efforts to twist out of his grip. He ignored my feeble attempts to escape him, and smiled against my neck, placing cool kisses there, igniting goose bumps on the sensitive skin. When his fingers finally stopped their tickle torture, and his cool palm lay flat and still on my bare stomach, underneath my shirt, I turned my head to give him a kiss.

I pressed my warm lips to his cold ones, and slowly glided my tongue along his bottom lip, then shyly nibbled on it. He made a little moaning sound at the feel of my teeth on him, and took his hand out from underneath my shirt, then cupped the back of my head, keeping me held to him.

When we finally broke apart, he gave me my favorite panty-droppin smirk. I smirked back.

"What was that for?" I asked a little breathlessly.

"I had to cheer you up, love. I adore your smile and I wanted to see it," he told me simply, then kissed the tip of my nose.

I smiled and turned my body sideways to snuggle into him more. He accommodated my new position, letting both my legs dangle off the side of his lap, and kept both his arms wrapped around me while I rested my head on his shoulder.

He kissed my forehead. "When you come out of here, love, you won't be you…" he informed me lightly, hugging me to him.

I nodded, already knowing this. "I know," I said casually with a shrug.

Then something occurred to me.

_Oh, God…what if he's not okay with that?_

"Is that okay?" I asked hesitantly.

"Yes," he answered immediately…reassuringly. I breathed a sigh of relief and he lightly chuckled. "Yeah, I miss taking care of my little girl and playing with Marie."

I nodded.

"But I'll miss you while I'm doing that with them," he pointed out.

I kissed his temple and started running my fingers through his hair, softly grazing his scalp with my short fingernails. He closed his eyes and relaxed into my touch. I knew how much he loved that…the feel of my nails on his skin.

"I love you."

He opened his eyes and focused back on me. "I love you, too."

"I love that you love all of me…that you take care of Isabella and play with Marie."

"Happy to do it, love," he assured me with a confident smile.

I bit my lip nervously then. "Hmmm…honey, are you okay now?"

He reflexively tightened his hold on me. "Nope," he said, trying to keep his tone light.

I nodded in understanding and wrapped my arms around his neck, squeezing him into a hug. "Do you want to stay?" I whispered while my mouth was by his ear.

I needed this session to get a move on. The anxiety was beginning to creep back in, with or without the Valium's help. I needed to hear the girls' voices again. I needed to be reassured that they were still there…and that they would help me out with this 'breakdown'…that they wouldn't leave me alone to deal with it on my own.

I loosened my grip around Edward's neck and sat back to gaze at him questioningly. After a few seconds of being dazzled and reassured by his beautiful golden orbs, his eyes flicked away from mine and over to Carlisle. After a few seconds, I got the picture that they seemed to be doing their silent communication thing again, so I just laid my head back down on Edward's shoulder and waited for it to be over with.

Before he spoke to me again, I felt Edward's arm tighten it's hold around me three times, and I heard a low hiss escape from his slightly parted lips.

_Uh-oh…_

"Love…" he trailed off softly.

I lifted my head from his shoulder and kept my gaze focused on him alone. I knew that he was upset with Carlisle right now. Why? Hell, I don't know, but the hiss was a dead giveaway. So I made sure not to look in Carlisle's direction and kept my eyes mainly focused on Edward.

I was _his_ mate, and therefore I remained loyal to _him_. To look at, or acknowledge in any way, the person/vampire that he was currently upset with, would only tell his instincts otherwise; that I was, somehow, 'unloyal' to him, and that would piss him off.

Vampires can be so fucking dramatic sometimes. Not to mention territorial.

I bit my lip. "Hmm?"

He softened his gaze then, and gave me a soft, chaste kiss. When he pulled away, he cupped my cheek, ran his thumb along the sensitive skin below my right eye, and smiled at me reassuringly.

I gave him a small smile in return, and wondered what was going on.

"Sessions need to remain between you and Carlisle," he informed me quietly, but I could still read the reluctance written all over his face. He really didn't want to leave me in here.

I nodded and then kissed _his_ nose, for once. He smiled at the unexpected action and looked at me questioningly.

"I'll be okay," I assured him.

He nodded and kissed me chastely again. "I know you will," he whispered against my lips, then let his hand fall away from my face, back down to his lap. He softly patted my bottom then. "Hop up, love. Time to get this show on the road."

I nodded in complete agreement and stood from his lap. When he stood up, he pulled me into a tight embrace, cradling my body to his, and murmured against the shell of my ear that he would be right outside the door.

"Okay," I acquiesced, then sat down where he had been sitting - in my high-backed leather chair.

Edward turned and walked out of the room rather quickly then…like, if he didn't hurry, then he would change his mind and continue to argue with Carlisle, or something. I hoped they weren't too angry with each other, if they were angry at all, that is. I knew their current father/son brawl was about me, and that made me feel guilty.

_First Emmett and Rosalie leave, and now Edward and Carlisle are fighting? God, could I be anymore of a bad luck charm?_

"There, now…are you ready, dear?" Carlisle asked, pulling me out of my reverie.

I gave him a curt nod. "Yes, very ready," I assured him.

He gave me a warm smile. "Good. Where would you like to start today?" he asked, opening his trusty leather journal and grabbing that same black pen.

_Hmm…I wonder if he always uses that pen for the leather book. Would it bother him if he had to use a different one? It would bother me. God, and if I had to switch to a blue one, that would be torture, especially in the middle of a paragraph. I wouldn't be able to-_

"Bella?"

"Yeah?" I asked, quickly flicking my eyes away from the gold black-ink pen, and focusing on his gold eyes instead.

"Where would you like to start?" he asked patiently, repeating his question.

"Oh, well…you know, I'm just going to be telling you about random things that come to mind. I need to get this crap outta my head, Carlisle. Do you think you can keep up?" I asked, quirking my eyebrow playfully in a challenge.

He smirked. "Do your worst…" he murmured, obviously all too happy to accept my challenge at jotting down my random, erratic thoughts and memories.

I nodded and sighed, then quickly focused on my old friend, Mr. Squiggly Line, on Carlisle's huge dean desk.

_Hello there._

I lightly chuckled. "Umm…yeah, I've been talking to myself a lot lately. Inside my head, I mean. I suppose I'm hoping that Isabella or Marie will eventually respond to one of my inner-ramblings, but so far, they haven't…" I trailed off in slight disappointment.

Carlisle nodded in understanding and gave me a sympathetic smile.

I glanced at the clock. 11:02am. One hour.

_Let's do this._

I sighed. "Alright, well…"

_When first grade started, Jim bought us a beautiful golden retriever puppy. Of course, I was allergic to the sweet little animal. But I couldn't stop playing with it, even though I sneezed and coughed constantly. Jim got angry at my asthma and I further enraged him by doing something…I don't even remember what. But I do remember being dragged up to my room again and tied to my bed with the blue scarves.  
"You're an evil child. You have stolen your mother from me."  
"No, Daddy! I didn't take anything! I promise I didn't steal!"  
Again, the ice pick was poised over my eyes and he stuck me carefully, just until it hurt, on my face and slowly down my body. Jim's conversation with me gradually became crazier and angrier. Eventually, he took that ice pick and began raking it up and down my labia and clitoris, cutting me, then stabbing at me. He poked it over and over into my tiny vagina and into my rectum. I screamed bloodcurdling screams of agony. I was positive he was killing me. When he finally stopped, he was crying…one of the few times I had seen him cry, and he was talking to his angel as he left the room. I lay there with blood running from my wounds. I couldn't get out of bed for a week. Jim never said that he was sorry, but he took good care of me; bringing me snacks and books to read and things to play with. He even brought me Mommy's jewelry box for me to look at and try on her pretty necklaces. My body healed faster than my mind did. To have the pain again after the freedom and fun summer with Mom and Granny was too much. I couldn't even escape into fantasy. I was deeply depressed._

"Jesus Christ…" Carlisle muttered exasperatedly, obviously not expecting me to just 'dive right in' like I had warned him I would.

I nodded in agreement. "Mm-hmm, tell me about it."

He sighed. "Go on, dear. Keep talking…let it all out."

"Oh, I plan on it," I reassured him, hoping with all my might that I would hear Isabella or Marie while I was talking about my past horrors.

_My asthma continued. Mommy came home from one of her trips and took me to the doctor, who emphatically said, "If this child is to stop having asthma, you must get rid of the dog."  
Jim sat me down, looking me piercingly in the eyes and said, "The whole family has decided that we would rather keep the puppy than you. You'll just have to learn to live with the asthma because King is more important than you."  
I went up to my room, still wheezing, and lay on my bed. The stains from the ice pick incident were still on my covers. I walked out onto the balcony overlooking the cement driveway. Once I was able to catch my breath, the only thought in my mind was a compelling need to escape. I needed to be able to breathe again.  
"Let's leave," Isabella said.  
"I wish I could fly like you. I would fly away. No one loves me, and no one wants me."  
"It's easy," Isabella said. "Just flap your arms **really hard** and you'll go up, up into the sky. And you're right...no one loves you, 'cept for me and maybe Bobby."  
"Will you help me fly?"  
"Yesss! I'll go with you and we'll never come back. Maybe they'll even be sad that we're gone."  
I climbed onto the railing of the balcony, and looked up to the sky. I do not remember consciously choosing to die, merely to leave what I could not tolerate anymore. I stood on the rail, flapping my arms like an idiot, determined that I would fly away. I took a giant leap off the rail and plunged head-first from the second story balcony. I felt no fear as I fell, merely a fascination that flying didn't work after all. I have no idea how long I lay crumpled on the driveway. I drifted back to the present time and place with Bobby shouting and crying over me, "Don't be dead, please don't die."  
The next memory was of Jim yanking me up and the piercing, electric pain that came from the broken arm that he was pulling. I could hear the bones crunching. Bobby made a sling out of a towel, as he'd learned to do in Boy Scouts, and went with me to the hospital. Both bones in my left arm were broken, so I got a cast up to my shoulder. It wasn't until I lost consciousness, later that night, that they discovered my fractured skull and brain concussion. The doctor told me to curl up in a little ball for a spinal tap. He was amazed that I didn't even whimper when he stuck the needle in my back. I wondered where else he would stick the needle, or if he would tie me up. In just a few moments he said that he was done and that he was sorry he had to poke me…that I was a 'brave, good girl'. It seemed an odd message, for when Daddy stuck me, he always said that I was 'bad' or 'evil'. I kept vomiting from the concussion and the doctor told me to lie flat in the bed and to not wiggle around. Nurses brought in sand bags to put by my head and body, to keep me from moving. Terror rose in me at what would come next, but they were never mean. They spoke softly to me and brought me a popsicle._

"Umm…" I trailed off.

Carlisle looked up from his journal to gaze at me questioningly.

I smiled nervously. "Yeah, I never did tell anyone I jumped off that balcony on purpose…you're the first person to know," I told Carlisle in confidence.

He raised his eyebrows in slight surprise. "Never?"

I shook my head. "Nope…never," I mumbled quietly.

He nodded in acknowledgement and I continued on with my random memories.

_I missed three months of the first grade because of the accident. A good portion of the time was spent locked in the basement. Mom would give us breakfast, then go to work. Bobby would leave for school, and Jim would order me down to the basement. I would try to smuggle bits of food into my clothes, for there was no lunch in the black stinky space under the stairs. I would hide long strings of yarn to play with, or rubber bands…anything minutely small that could be a distraction during the long claustrophobic days. If I was caught hiding anything, I was beaten. My greatest escape was my imagination. Isabella's and my game-playing became wonders of creativity. We could play a whole game of hangman, or checkers on an imaginary board, in total blackness. But even then, there were endless hours of boredom and anxiety in the fear that I would die unnoticed in the basement. My plastered left arm hurt and my headaches were fierce._

_When I finally returned to school, everyone knew their multiplication tables…everyone except me. It seemed as though life had gone on without me, and I was overcome by shyness and the humiliation of not understanding the classroom work. At recess, I ran from the playground and hid in the bushes, where Isabella and I would play little games of our own. The teacher found me and demanded that I return to the classroom. It was a horrible year, and Isabella and I missed Mr. McDonald a lot. The teacher was strict and very intimidating. I got F's in arithmetic and Cursive Writing on my report card. I was used to the A's that had always been awarded by Mr. McDonald, so I felt deeply ashamed. I didn't tell anyone that I was unaware of time for long stretches and that it was Isabella doing most of my school work. I had the sensation of being dragged into invisibility somewhere far away and gray. I didn't know why I wasn't like everyone else, but I had been laughed at when I tried to explain my 'twin'.  
Mrs. Franklin, the school counselor, tried to make me feel better by saying, "Of course missing three months of school would put you behind, and your teacher was a very inconsiderate woman for giving you F's."_

"She was," Carlisle reaffirmed quietly.

I nodded, bringing my legs up onto the chair to sit comfortably in an Indian style position. "I know, right," I muttered in agreement. "Fucking bitch…" I mumbled off to the side.

Carlisle lightly chuckled at my side comment as I continued on, concentrating on each memory and listening carefully for the two distinct voices in my head.

_My asthma continued all throughout first grade because Jim wouldn't get rid of our puppy. I loved King, but didn't like the wheezing. There were many nights when I sat up in bed, struggling to breathe.  
"You know Daddy is keeping King on purpose, just to make you sick," Isabella informed me.  
We shared the same body, but she never had asthma; at least she always acted like it was only me.  
"I love King."  
"Then you're stupid!"  
"It's not his fault he has soft fur!" I pointed out.  
"I know it's not! It's Mommy's fault for letting Daddy keep him. Mommies are sposta take care of their kids," Isabella said with finality._

_It was about this time that Isabella began stealing. It was usually tiny little objects…things that people wouldn't notice were missing. Mommy took us to Chinatown, out to a family dinner, and in the little gift shop that smelled of sandalwood and incense, Isabella stole a tiny carved ivory man, and a little carved deer, both less than two inches high. I blanked out the theft, but when I found them in my pocket later, Isabella told me that she did it.  
"You shouldn't steal things, we'll get in trouble!"  
"I can if I want to," Isabella insisted with defiance.  
"Daddy's gonna kill us," I pointed out.  
"Daddy takes everything from us," she reminded me.  
I felt humiliation for being party to a crime, but secretly delighted in having something to play with now. Isabella stole other small items once she figured out how easy it was; little pieces of chalk, jacks, and a tiny rubber ball. They were our first possessions. We were smart enough to figure out how to hide our secret stash. I took a thick white sock and put our treasures inside, then folded them to look just like an ordinary pair in the back of the drawer._

**Bella…** her voice whispered into my subconscious.

I gasped. "Oh, thank you Lord," I rushed out in a relieved voice.

Carlisle looked at me questioningly, concern crossing his features. Yeah, I would be concerned too, if I was him. I'm happy that Isabella stole stuff when I was a kid? I gotta fix this.

I laughed nervously. "Um, yeah…Isabella…" I told him knowingly with a nod.

Understanding seemed to dawn on him. "Oh! You can hear her now?"

**I want my Edward. Where's he at?**

I nodded and smiled, relieved to the point that I could almost cry. "Yeah."

He nodded and gave me a warm smile. "Good, good. Maybe she'll come out and talk some today?" he asked curiously.

**Nope. Want my Edward…**

I shrugged. "Maybe," I mumbled.

**Bella!**

_What?_

**I want my Edward. Where's he at?**

_Outside the door._

**M'kaaaay**

"Okay, well anyway…yesterday I remembered a lot of stuff from the summer when I was six years old. It was a bad summer…a horrible summer…a downright sucky summer…" I trailed off.

Carlisle nodded in understanding, then focused his concerned gaze on me, eyeing me critically. "Would you like to tell me about it?" he asked hesitantly in a soft voice.

I nodded, thankful that Carlisle was being sensitive to my apprehension on this subject. This was going to be a hard for me to talk about because everything about it seemed so new and fresh. It was all I could think about yesterday.

"Yeah…might as well. Umm…"

**Bella!**

_What?_

**I love you** Isabella giggled.

I sighed and began.

_At the beginning of my second-ever summer vacation, I spent a week at Granny Hadassah's house. She took me to a concert, where I got to see the live play, 'Peter Pan'. I clapped for Tinker Bell until my hands were sore. Granny rubbed my hands with her lavender lotion, which she had retrieved from her handbag while we were sitting in our seats. Then she brought my right hand up to her lips and kissed my palm.  
"I'm glad you love fairies, too," she whispered against it.  
I held my other hand up for a kiss, as well, while I sniffed the scented lotion on my right hand.  
"But I don't like elves," I whispered back.  
When I returned home, I took my standard position against the wall, knowing by now that it was required of me. I stayed still, looking straight ahead with my hands turned palms up, held out in offering to Jim. Jim was almost incoherent in his tirades about my mother and her 'other men'. He was angry that my mother had let me go to my Granny's house for a week, and kept yelling about how Granny was a dirty kike who was ruining all that he had accomplished with me so far. He didn't want me around her…her, or her nigger neighbor friend, Mary. He demanded to know what we had done, and who I had associated myself with.  
"I wasn't a bad girl, Daddy," I promised in a timid voice.  
He stomped his way over to me, grabbed a fistful of hair at the top of my head, almost pulling my bangs out of their roots, and forced my head to lean back so that I could look up at him. I knew better than to cry out in pain.  
"Did you let that nigger touch you?" he sneered in my face.  
"No," I whimpered.  
"Did you talk to her?" he persisted.  
"No."  
He let go of my hair and slapped me across the face.  
"Are you lying to me?" he asked in a menacing tone.  
His ice blue eyes locked with mine, staring me down. Under his penetrating glare, I started to cry and confessed everything. I had talked to the nice neighbor lady with brown skin. And I had let her touch me. She was always smiling and she was constantly humming pretty gospel songs under her breath. That Sunday morning, she had let me and her seven year old daughter sit on her big lap while she rocked us in the rocking chair that was on her porch, and she taught us a song called, 'Amazing Grace'. She complimented me on my soft singing voice, saying that I sounded like an angel. She let me play in her front yard with her kids when they returned from church in the afternoon, and she had even made us chocolate chip cookies for a snack. Jim roared out his hatred for me. We were alone in the house. Bobby was out somewhere playing, and my mother had left on a business trip to Washington, D.C, for two months. After my beating for lying to him, Jim had announced that for the entire time Mommy would be away, he did not want to see my ugly kike face. I was locked in my room, instead of the basement this time, not to see or play with anyone for the next two months. I was officially grounded. Desolation overcame me as I sat in my huge, beautiful room with it's wooden floors, a wool area rug with lovely pink roses splashing the edges, a desk and chair, and a walk-in closet filled with clothes. There were no toys, no radio or TV…nothing to play with except my secret little stash of items in the sock drawer. After a week of warmth and fun with Granny, the isolation was unbearable. Hours dragged by in merciless succession. For days, I lay on the big four poster full-sized bed and looked at the face made by a crack in my ceiling plaster. Occasionally I cried, but gradually imagination came to my rescue. There was Isabella, who could escape the room and could think up funny stories, and talked about us having a new Daddy, who would love and take care of us. She seemed to have a limitless number of creative games to suggest. She made a pretend oven out of our desk, where only delicious meals were baked, and we would share our make-believe food with the two-inch tall ivory man that we had named Yen…it was the only Oriental name I could think of at the time. When I was sad, I cried, and Isabella took care of me…but she always grew angry because of it. She hated it when I cried. In the long days of isolation, she etched her initials into the desk in a dozen different places with a nail file. The saving grace was the full-length mirror in the bathroom connected to my bedroom. I danced in front of that mirror and shifted from Isabella to myself, carrying on long conversations, and seeing Isabella's slightly different face smiling back at me. The long isolation was reinforcing the dissociation, but for me, at that time, it was salvation; I was entertained and saved by my favorite companion. I saw the sunrise casting pinks around the room and the next thing I would be aware of, was a cold dinner sitting on my desk and the sky growing dark outside. Those were the lucky dissociative days; lucid days were harder, seeming to drag on forever. I missed my friends, but I missed Bobby the most. Jim would come at mealtimes, unlock the door, say nothing to me and leave me a plate of food, then relock the door. I will eternally remember the sound of the deadbolt being jammed into it's lock on the outside of my bedroom door. Bobby never forgot me. He would sneak up when Jim was busy and send me messages under the door. We played hangman and tic-tac-toe, passing the paper back and forth under the door. Comic books were smuggled under the door and I avidly read every one he could bring me. We could whisper to each other, but we dared not talk aloud and get caught. From my room I looked into the orange trees, so Bobby climbed clear up in the tree nearest my room and flashed me Morse code with a small mirror reflecting the sun. He smuggled me coloring books, drawing paper, crayons and pencils. I spent many hours drawing, then hiding my pictures from Jim under the bed. Jim had gotten his license back that year and he had bought himself a new car. On the days that I heard the car pull out of the driveway, taking Bobby with him, I felt the intense sensation of abandonment. There were no games under the door, and no meals…only my split-self playmate. Maggie, our Irish maid, had worked for Jim for years, but she was a nobody to me. She knew of the violence. She had seen me get burned, and she had walked by me tied to a chair.  
She had told me, "Get away from me, child. I'm sorry for what goes on in this house, but I have six children to feed and I need this job."  
She could hear me scream and pass on by the basement as though I didn't exist. She was one more adult who looked into my child's eyes of pain and turned away. Isabella wanted to hurt that woman, and on the days that Jim left the house, we had hoped that Maggie would come to our room…but she never did. I stood by the hour with my face pressed to the window in the hopes of hearing Bobby play, or seeing a bird fly into the trees. As summer dragged on, Bobby got bored with our under-the-door games and would ride off on his bicycle. I felt like screaming and flailing my fists at the locked door, but I knew that would just get me hurt. I thought of my school friends playing jump-rope and swimming, and I would lay on the floor in my hot room and cry. Eventually, Isabella began to pull my hair and pluck my eyelashes out. Whole sections on the front of my head became bald, so that I didn't have bangs anymore. I don't know why she did it. We were both upset when I would look at myself in the mirror, but she still kept doing it. It was a very hot day when I stood at the window in my endless wait that I took a crayon, that Bobby had smuggled to me, and wrote in bold print on the window: PLEASE HELP ME. I left it on all day, hoping that somebody would come.  
Late in the evening, Bobby tapped on my door and whispered, "What did you write on the window? It's backward. Do you want Daddy to come hurt you?"  
I rubbed it off with an old sock. I was upset when I realized that you have to write on glass backward for anyone to read it from the other side. It was like I had sent a flare into fog. I returned to Bobby, who was lying on his stomach by my door. He passed me a note which said, 'Don't give up. Should I go to the police? I love you.' At the bottom was a picture of the two of us hanging from the ceiling by a rope with a noose around our necks, and our tongues were hanging out. He drew X's for our eyes.  
"No, don't do anything to make Daddy mad."  
I always talked him out of his rescue ideas. We couldn't fight Jim, Lady Angel, or that bastard elf, Fritz. We both cried, and Bobby slid his fingers under the door. He had bitten his nails down to the quick, and even had red raw spots where he had gnawed at the cuticles. His ravaged hands were like a lifeline to me. I lay my face down on his fingertips and continued to cry. Hunger cramped my stomach, for often there was no lunch. I gnawed all my pencils and erasers, and guzzled water from the bathroom sink. In the last month, when Bobby had gone to play with his friends, out of hunger and desolation, I began peeling strips of my wallpaper off the walls. At first, I tried to peel the white strips between the pink flowers, but then in anger, I peeled away great swaths off the walls and chewed the hunks of paper. The dried paste tasted sweet. After many days of doing this, I became very constipated. Finally, I lay on my bed and whimpered from the pain of the stomachache. After a few days of not touching my dinners, Jim came in and talked to me. It was our first conversation in weeks. He saw the missing wallpaper and was very angry that I had eaten it. He figured out what my problem was, and dragged me by my hair into the bathroom, stripped me down and ordered me on all fours in the bathtub. He brought in castor oil and gave me a hot soapsuds enema while I sobbed in agony. When that didn't work, he took me out of the tub and dropped my small, naked body onto the bathroom floor tiles. With an angry scowl on his face, he stuck two of his fingers inside of me and broke up the cemented paper in my rectum with his fingers. There were no words of sympathy as Isabella and I wailed and screamed and bled. After that, he began bringing me lotts of food, realizing that I was down to a weak collection of bones. I must have looked horrible with my emaciated body and bald spots, for he let Bobby bring me dinner. He wasn't allowed to leave my room until I finished my food. That was a saving connection in my life. Bobby sat on my rug and we played Candy Land while I ate during his turn. He even began bringing me chocolate shakes and candy bars. I think Jim had panicked, realizing that if I died in my room while under his care, then he would go to jail. Just before Mommy returned home, I was let out of my room. I was weak from lack of exercise. Jim sat Bobby and me down, and told us that I had been in my room for being so wicked. For associating myself with a nigger. He put terror in our hearts and minds at even the thought of telling. He said that Fritz and Frieda would be watching us every minute of the day. We took Daddy's threats seriously. Jim had my room re-wallpapered and put a lovely lace canopy over my bed. My desk was polished and refinished, then a lovely oil painting of the ocean was hung up over it. My summer looked as though it was wiped away, but Isabella and I remembered._

I wiped the tears out of my blurry vision and took the tissue out of Carlisle's offering hand. "Sorry…" I mumbled as I wiped the last of my tears away and sniffled.

"You're fine, dear," he assured me. "Well, some of Isabella's racism makes a little more sense now. It's not just a learned language of prejudice terms, you were actually severely punished for interacting with a black woman...your grandmother's neighbor. Is that correct?"

I nodded. "Yeah."

"Do you share Isabella's views, as well? Or, has that changed as you grew older and were no longer under Jim's influence?" Carlisle asked curiously.

I shrugged and balled the tissue up in my fist, done crying now. "It's kind of hard to say," I hedged. "I mean, I don't hate black people, or Jews. I'm not a racist…not at all. But, I don't exactly approach them out of the blue, ya know? Tyler, at school, was my friend, but he was the one that initiated it. Know what I mean? Otherwise, I don't think I would have ever talked to him…" I trailed off.

Carlisle nodded.

"But, I'm also naturally shy, so…" I trailed off with a shrug.

"I understand, dear. Go on," he gently instructed.

I nodded and looked at the clock. 11:38am. "Okay."

_Mommy came home and said that she was shocked at how skinny and pale I was. Jim said that I had been sick all summer, and that I had singed my hair on the gas burner while I was making popcorn. Mom took all of us, including Jim, on another camping trip to the High Sierras. I was too weak to keep up with the hiking, and even Mom was a bit disgusted with me. She made me wear a little pink baseball cap to cover my head, which had small scabs from where Isabella had pulled the clumps of hair so hard that my scalp had bled. We stopped at one campground. The only time that Jim was cruel to me there, was in the outhouse.  
He grabbed me by the back of my neck and shoved my head deep into the stinking latrine hole, then said, "I wish when your mother was pregnant with you, she'd have come here and let you be born in this."  
The swill at the bottom left a lasting picture in my mind._

**Where's my Ipod, doll?** Marie asked out of the blue.

I smiled slightly at her voice.

_Edward has it._

**Oh yeah? And where is my delicious piece of man candy right now?**

_Outside the door._

**Why the fuck are we in here right now anyway, Bell? Where's Mom? Is she home? If Doctor Dad is here, then she's here too, right?**

_Yes._

**Good.**

I smiled, but bit my lip from letting it show too much. I was relieved and glad to have heard both, Marie's sharp voice, and Isabella soft, high-pitched one. They were back. They weren't abandoning me.

**What are you talking about?** Marie asked.

**I want my Edward** Isabella piped up.

**Shut up, kid. I asked Bell a question.**

**_You_ shut up** Isabella retorted.

**No, _you_ shut up** Marie countered.

**You!** Isabella insisted.

**Shut the fuck up, you little brat! Bell? I'm waiting** she stated impatiently.

_Um…you guys went away for a little while._

**What?**

**No we didn't, we're right here Bella** Isabella assured me.

_Yeah, you are **now**._

**What? Bell we didn't fucking go away, what the hell are you talking about? And I'm not gonna abandon you, so you can cut that shit out right motherfucking now** Marie stated angrily.

**Don't yell at her** Isabella scolded Marie.

_Oh. Kay._

**Do you hear me?** Marie persisted

_Yeah. I heard you._

**Good.**

"What is it?" Carlisle asked, noticing my distracted stare at the wall.

I turned back to Carlisle and focused on him, furrowing my brow. "Umm…apparently the girls don't realize that they've been silent for a day and a half now…" I trailed off quietly, confused at this revelation. Weren't they always aware?

**Bell, what the fuck did I just tell you?** Marie asked.

**I said don't yell at her!** Isabella repeated.

**Shut up rugrat! I'm not talking to you** Marie stated petulantly.

**Fuck you** Isabella retorted.

**Bell, we weren't gone Marie insisted. What the fuck are you talking about?**

_Don't worry about it…it was all a misunderstanding_ I placated her.

Carlisle nodded. "Yes…your healing process requires absolutely no interference from your alternates because they will only attempt to shield you from it. Your mind didn't allow that. So, just like when you come back into awareness and have no concept of the time jump, Isabella and Marie have come back into awareness in a similar fashion. They are unaware of the skip in time," he informed me.

**Whatever doc, fuck your healing** Marie retorted.

**I want my Edward **Isabella whispered to me.

_Soon_ I assured her.

"Confusing…" I muttered distractedly.

Carlisle lightly chuckled. "A bit," he agreed. "Would you like to continue? We still have about fifteen minutes…" he trailed of suggestively.

"Oh!" I nodded, "Yeah, sure…"

_By age seven, I was becoming aware of the control that Jim had over his own violence. It was calculated. When Mommy was home, he would talk soft and sweetly to me, and never hurt me. Mom was the safety for me. Hope would swell inside of me when Mom was around. Daddy would gently play with my hair instead of yanking on it. He softly ran his fingers along my back when I would lay on the couch for my naps. He gave me and Bobby piggyback rides and tickled us. He acted as though I was cherished and special. Time after time, in my affection-starved existence, the hope that he loved me would begin to sprout in my mind, only to be cruelly dashed again and again._

_"Where were you this summer?" Sarah asked when we began second grade. "Bobby said that you were sick and your Daddy said that you were spending time with your Grandma. I missed you! Your hair looks awful, what happened to you?"  
"I did go to see my Granny, and then I got sick. I burned my hair in an accident," I told her.  
Always the lies.  
"It won't take too long to grow back your bangs where you burned your hair. You look like you went through a lawnmower," Sarah giggled.  
"Heh…yeah, funny," I said halfheartedly with a small smile while Isabella screamed at me to punch Sarah in the nose.  
Miss Dunne was a pleasant teacher, although rather ineffective. She was from the South and always moved and spoke slowly, barely able to get her huge bottom in between the desks when she would walk down the aisles, passing out papers. Jim was outraged that I had a nigger for a teacher, but I thought she was fun to be around…nigger, or not. We got to oil paint in school, and Miss Dunne asked us to paint a picture of children playing. I painted a big picture of children playing hide-and-seek in the orange trees. To finish the picture, I painted in the big window pane with a cross over it. When Miss Dunne asked me what the bars on the single window was for, I became deeply embarrassed. My concept of children playing had been as the viewer from my room. When I brought the painting home, Jim was livid. I took my standard position against the wall and held out my book bag and picture to him in offering. Again, without making eye contact.  
He shook me, yelling, "You stupid little girl! Did that nigger say anything to you? Don't you know this is another way of telling people what I do to you? They would never understand that what I do is for your own good. You're evil, Isabella! You need me to fix you. They would never understand that!"  
I whimpered as he grabbed a fistful of my long hair and dragged me into the kitchen. He took the butcher knife and held it over my fingers, threatening to cut them off and make them into pickles again.  
"How can you paint another goddamn picture with no fingers, Isabella?"  
I was silent. He hadn't given me permission to speak. He threw the knife on the counter and backhanded me, then grabbed my small shoulders and shook me again.  
"Did you hear me? Answer."  
"Yes," I sobbed as the tears started to flow.  
He squatted down to my level and looked me dead in the eyes. "Don't you fucking cry. Crying is for weak kikes, Isabella."  
I put my hand to my hurt cheek as another sob tore through my throat.  
Jim squinted his glazed eyes into a glare. "I will give you purity," he threatened.  
I sucked in a deep breath and nodded, trying to keep quiet.  
"Now, how can you paint if you don't have any fingers?" he asked in an eerily calm voice.  
"I can't," I whimpered, trying my damndest to stop the tears. I didn't want any purity.  
He stood back up then, and began undoing his belt from his black jeans. "Turn around and hold onto the counter," he instructed.  
I did as I was told and held onto the countertop with a death grip. I remember how my fingertips had turned white with my effort. I held my breath to prevent my screams as he repeatedly beat my back, bottom, and thighs with his belt. Eventually, I couldn't hold my breath any longer and exhaled an involuntary sob, then started gasping for breath and screaming from the pain. This only angered him more...he had told me not to cry. He dragged me down to the basement where I stayed until bedtime, or should I say…twenty minutes before Mom came home from work._

"Um, yeah…I remember that I was very sorry that I had painted that picture of the kids playing. I didn't know that it would be inadvertently 'telling someone' what Jim had done to me that summer. I was terrified and I never painted again. Only Isabella does now," I said quietly, frowning.

Carlisle nodded at that information, keeping his pen moving across the journal's paper before him. I glanced at the clock and went on.

_Not long after that, someone gave us a slab of venison to cook. The great hunk of meat was lying on the big butcher block table and Jim was carving the meat off the bone. For no apparent reason, he grabbed me and stripped off my shirt, then laid me down on the table in the blood next to the meat. My arm touched the wet meat. I could smell the blood in my hair. Jim took the knife and held it in front of my face.  
He said, "You are a dirty little kike and you have stolen everyone from me. Mommy and Bobby are mine. Not yours! Do. You. Understand?" I nodded even though I had no idea what he meant. He got that glazed over look in his ice-blue eyes and went to the back porch for a rope. The idea of getting off the table while he left the room never even crossed my mind. Isabella had taken over my survival instincts and she was quiet at the moment. Self-preservation no longer existed for me. Endurance was all I knew. He came back with the thin rope and tied me down to make 'Pot Roast of Isabella'. He pretended to carve off my arms and legs.  
"I'll give King your shin bones to chew on. I'll cook you up real nice in the oven…make you all tasty with onions and mushrooms, and your precious fucking Mommy won't even know she's eating you. I'll tell everyone that you ran away. No one will even know you are dead," he said between maniacal giggles.  
His face had a faraway crazy look that meant talking to him was useless, for he was busy talking to his angel. Then he took the knife and cut deeply into chest, just above my right nipple. I cried and screamed, begging for him to stop. Blood poured out onto my armpit. The torture seemed to last for years. There was deer blood in my hair and my own blood ran onto my chest, neck, and right arm. My blood mingled with the animal blood on the table as I twisted and screamed. I didn't know if Jim was going to finish killing me. Looking down, I saw the gaping wound on my chest as deep red blood continued to ooze out. Jim continued to slowly, graphically, touch me all over with the knife and tell me all the things he would do to me. I slipped into a state of shock from the blood loss and terror. I think it was one of the few times that I actually lost consciousness, or maybe I just dissociated into Isabella and consciously drifted to a safer place. Later, Jim took me to a doctor that I recognized as one of the bad men who held an 'interest' in me, and he put stitches in my chest with a wicked gleam in his eye._

"How many of these 'bad men' were there?" Carlisle asked curiously.

"Nine," I answered automatically.

He nodded and wrote something in his journal.

"They ranged from doctors, to teachers, to lawyers, to your regular-everyday mechanic. I just remember thinking that it was really weird that the bad men looked normal…not like monsters, or anything," I said with a shake of my head.

Carlisle nodded. "Right…"

"But, that didn't change the fact that I viewed them all as monsters…because, that's what they _were_," I concluded.

"Would you like to talk about any of them?" Carlisle asked.

I shook my head. "Nope."

Carlisle looked a little confused by my blatant refusal to his request, so I decided to elaborate a bit. "Heh…umm, that's Isabella's story to tell," I hinted.

"Oh, of course…go on, dear," he instructed, both of us noticing eight minutes left on the clock.

_It was about a week later, and the stitches in my little flat breast were getting itchy, that Isabella came angrily to life and accused, "You just lie there and take it! You let Daddy do things to us."  
"You know Daddy just hurts us worse if we don't lie quiet," I pointed out.  
"Well I don't have to be nice. You're the nice one, not me. I hate him," she proclaimed.  
As I watched, an observer from a distant place, Isabella, my hands and my body, picked up the raw liver that Daddy had soaking in a bowl of milk in the kitchen. Isabella picked up the cold, slimy, dark organ and in ever intensifying anger, began smearing the bloody liver on the counter, the walls, and the kitchen table on which I had lain and been cut. She smashed the liver around and pounded on it with her tiny fists until little red-purple globs stuck on every surface of the kitchen. The liver was ruined and the kitchen was a disaster. I was frightened at what Isabella had done. Hours later, Daddy found me hiding under the dirty clothes in my hamper. He dragged me, screaming and crying, into the now-clean kitchen and put my finger in the nutcracker, then squeezed it until I heard the tiny bone go crunch._

**Can we like…oh, I dunno, NOT talk about this shit anymore?** Marie asked cheekily.

_Nope, I have to keep going. I'm keeping my eye on the clock._

**Why does he want to hear about this shit anyway? Does he get off on it?**

_Ew. Marie, stop._

**Then STOP talking.**

I ignored her and went on, feeling slightly lightheaded.

_Mommy put her foot down about King because she was home enough in the fall to see the severity of my asthma. While Mom was at work, Jim brought the dog in the living room and fed him strychnine inside ground meat. He made us sit and watched King writhe around and vomit until he finally died. It seemed as though we were forced to watch for hours.  
Dad kept chanting, "We mustn't let things suffer."  
He explained to Bobby that it was all my fault King had to die. He left the room, sobbing, and didn't speak to me for a week. As I lay in my bed, crying and mourning the loss of my favorite puppy, Bobby came in and crawled into the bed next to me. He said that he knew it wasn't my fault.  
"Daddy's crazy. He could have given King away, he was a beautiful dog. I hate his rotten guts."  
Bobby could always express the anger that I never could. True to our code of silence, Mommy knew nothing of the murder. She had assumed we had given King to someone. She brought home a little black kitten because Bobby and I were so dejected after the experience. She said that it had to be an outside cat, and for me not to hold it that often. Bobby perked up a bit at having another animal to play with. One day, Jim was backing his car out of the garage and I saw his face as he deliberately ran over Cocoa, the kitten. It screamed in pain as it's back legs were crushed. It tried to drag itself forward.  
Daddy said in mock sympathy, "Oh shit, well that's too fucking bad. We mustn't let things suffer," as he put the car back in first gear and ran over Cocoa again, killing her this time. Bobby, Isabella, and I cried for days. Jim brought Blitzen, the Siberian husky puppy, home two weeks later. He mostly lived outside in the doghouse._

"And how did you and Blitzen get along?" Carlisle asked.

"Fine…"

"Did he survive Jim?"

"Yes."

"Well, that's a miracle," Carlisle remarked.

I nodded in agreement and continued on, noticing that my vision was starting to blur slightly. Isabella was becoming impatient.

**Want my Edward…love my Edward…** she sang lightly.

_The big nutcracker became a disabling for of abuse. Most of the time, it just flattened my finger, leaving the imprint of the metal teeth, but occasionally I heard the bone snap and I knew that my finger had been broken. Twice in the fall of second grade, I had broken fingers on my right hand. Jim would splinter them with a popsicle stick and bandage it, but writing in school was nearly impossible. It ruined recess, too, for it was hard to play games with broken fingers. Miss Dunne asked how I broke my fingers.  
"I fell off my bike."  
Again, the lies.  
"You certainly seem to hurt yourself often," she pointed out.  
Looking at the ground to keep myself from bursting into tears, I said, "I'm sorry. I'm just not very careful."  
"You better slow down, child. You do things too quickly."  
"Yes ma'am, I'll try," I placated.  
Sitting in school was always an agony for me, due to the bruises and inflamed private parts. I used to dread urinating at school because sometimes it burned so much, that I couldn't breathe or walk for a few minutes._

Carlisle nodded in sympathy.

**He's gonna cuddle me and sing to me and play with me…** Isabella continued to sing.

I rubbed my right eye and continued on.

_I had just turned seven, and it was around Christmas time in second grade, when I had accomplished what I had considered to be a supreme feat. For Mommy's birthday, she had asked me for one present - that I stop sucking my thumb. It was the hardest thing I ever did. For nights I couldn't sleep, my mouth felt desert parched. There are no smokers addicted to nicotine, more than I was addicted to my thumb. Isabella completely rejected the ridiculous idea of going without her thumb, but I tried very hard. That day, decorating the Christmas tree, I was feeling happy and proud of myself, because Mommy had acknowledged the gift, and the effort that I had made for her. I was singing the few Christmas songs that I knew, and softly fingering the pretty garland wrapped around the tree.  
Jim came in and demanded, "Stop that annoying singing, Isabella."  
I stopped, but then forgot about it when Isabella started singing 'Santa Claus Is Coming To Town'. I joined in and we sang together in our clear child-like voice, while rearranging ball ornaments on the tree. Jim went to the fireplace and picked up the poker. He lunged at me with it, but thrust it harder than he meant to, and the sharp end impaled me in the side. I screamed in agony and fear while Jim quickly got a towel and packed it in my side, then carried me out to the car and layed me down in the backseat.  
"Isabella, baby, I am so sorry. I don't know why I do these things to you, I don't know why I can't love you. I'm sorry," he told me through slight sobs. I was shocked to see the street light's reflection on the tears sliding down his cheeks. "I'm sorry," he repeated brokenly.  
Rather than threaten me, he **begged** me not to tell Mommy or the doctors that he had caused my injury. Of course I lied, saying that I had fallen on the hot poker. A piece of my liver had been cut, so I had to stay in the hospital over Christmas. Mommy came to see me everyday, staying long hours and missing meals sometimes. She looked pale, and haggard. She would stroke my head, bring me surprises, and read me a story every night at bed time. Christmas in the hospital wasn't so bad. There were carolers, little toys on the food trays, and cookies. All the nurses were very gentle with me. My doctor questioned, more than once, my story of how I fell on the poker.  
But I always cried and said, "I don't want to talk about it."_

I noticed that everything was silent then. Silent in my mind, silent in the room. I looked at Carlisle when my eyes started blinking without my permission.

"I don't sing anymore," I added quietly as an afterthought.

"Marie and Isabella do…" he countered softly.

I nodded and focused on my now shallow breathing. "Yes," I whispered, half in agreement with Carlisle, and half in encouragement for one of my alternates to just fucking _take over_ already.

I couldn't handle another breakdown right now, and that's what was going to happen if they didn't hurry the hell up. The emotions were beginning to consume me. These recent memories weren't going away, they were clouding my mind, making reality fuzzy…blurring the lines between my past and my present.

I gasped for a breath and clenched my eyes shut.

_Shit._

"Okay, Bella…? Bella, calm down," Carlisle instructed in a firm voice.

**Awww** Isabella cooed to me as I whimpered.

I heard the wooden door behind me abruptly swing open, and I felt Carlisle's strong hand on my shoulder before everything thankfully faded into a blissful black oblivion.

EPOV

I had been on the other side of that fucking closed door, completely focused on Carlisle's mind and closely watching my Bella's facial expressions as she spoke of her past. But not anymore. I would not just sit idly by anymore. No…my mate needed me.

I barged into the room, completely disregarding my father's instructions to stay outside until the end of the session. He could kiss my ass, my mate was in distress.

_She needs me._

I quickly approached my Bella's side, noticing with relief that she wasn't gasping for breath anymore, and that her face didn't look panic stricken as it had a minute ago.

I paused my steps when I was standing in front of her. After I brushed Carlisle's hand off her bare shoulder and nudged him off to the side, I hooked my hands underneath my girl's small shoulders and lifted her to my chest. I kissed her rosy cheek as her smiling face came closer to mine. I supported her slight weight with my forearm, and wrapped my other arm protectively around her back as she clung to me. I became immensely relieved when all of the anxiety from this morning's events immediately drained out of my body.

Isabella's giggles made it all better.

I held her tightly to me as she squeezed her arms around my neck in one of my favorite hugs.

When she loosened her grip, she kissed my cheek. "My Edward…" she trailed off and kissed my cheek again.

I smiled and breathed in her heavenly scent, allowing it to relax me further. I kissed her bare shoulder and let my lips linger there, "My baby love…" I murmured softly against her warm flesh.

She kissed me cheek again and giggled against the shell of my ear, making me smile. "You're mine," she whispered to me.

I turned my head slightly, pressing our cheeks together. "And you are mine," I assured her in a whisper to her ear.

She hummed in agreement, then lay her head on my shoulder, relaxing her grip on me and trailing her warm fingertips into the hair at the nape of my neck. I looked at my father then. He had been watching our exchange and was now writing in his journal that Isabella had come out, instead of Marie, at the end of this particular session.

When his eyes looked up and met mine, he assured me in our frequency "She'll be fine."

I nodded. "Thank you."

"Not a problem, son," he assured me as I turned on my heel to walk out of the room.

We were on the second flight of stairs when Isabella spoke up. "Edward?"

I used the hand that was at the small of her back to trace little circles along her spine. "What baby?"

"I gotta potty," she informed me.

I nodded. "Okay baby, you can in a second," I assured her, then stopped my trailing fingertips and placed my palm flat against the small of her back again, keeping her firmly held to me, and picked up my stride to a hurried pace back to our bedroom.

She huffed then, and started bouncing a bit on my forearm, alerting me to the urgency of the situation.

"Gotta goooo…" she whined, furrowing her brow and puckering her lips with her statement.

"Alright. Okay sweetie, we're almost there," I placated her, keeping up my fast-paced steps. I was practically jogging now.

She made a high-pitched whimpering noise, bouncing with each step I took. "Noooooow…now, now, now, now, now, now, now -"

"Okay," I said, interrupting her 'now' mantra, and placed her outside the door to our bathroom.

She rushed in, almost forgetting to close the door behind her, and used the bathroom. While she was in there, I took Marie's black Ipod out of my pocket and placed it back in her tin box. I sat on the bed and tried to figure out a way to tell Isabella that I had to go away for a few hours…without her. It was time for me to hunt again. I contemplated how this discussion would have been easier to have with Marie, or even with my Bella. My baby girl was the clingy one…the possessive one. As complicated as that made my situation sometimes, I still loved those things about her. Her clingy quality warmed my dead heart and made me smile. She needed me just as much as I needed her.

When Isabella came out of the bathroom after washing her hands, she smiled at me, then went over to the dvd shelf, letting me know that she wanted to watch a movie. I waited silently and swallowed back venom to sooth the current burn in my throat. Isabella took her time in trying to pick one out. When she finally selected one and brought it over to me, I told her no.

"No, Isabella," I told her firmly. My little girl would not be watching any of the Saw movies.

"Why?"

"Because it's ucky. Go pick another one," I instructed her.

"But I want this one," she insisted, practically shoving the dvd case in my face.

I snatched it out of her hand and placed it behind me on the bed. "No," I said in a firmer tone.

She whined and stomped her foot. I ignored it.

"Go pick out another one, baby doll," I suggested lightly and nodded my head towards the dvd stand.

She turned and went back to the dvds while I made a mental note to put my Bella's Saw Movie Collection in Emmett's bedroom and to keep it there while he was gone. Three movie rejections later, and I became frustrated.

"Alright, angel…you have a new rule. You cannot watch anything over the rating of PG-13," I informed her.

She stood before me and cocked her head to the side a bit as she gazed at me curiously. "A peejee? What's that?"

I fought a smile at her adorableness and kept a straight face. I turned over The Texas Chainsaw Massacre dvd case and showed her the little letter R at the bottom of the back cover. "This, baby girl," I said while pointing to it, "If this spot right here, has an 'R' on it, then it's a naughty movie. It's ucky," I told her, trying to speak in her terms.

She nodded in understanding, then took the movie from my hands and went back to the dvd shelf in search for a movie without the letter R on the back. I didn't think it would be that hard, but she seemed to be avoiding the Disney movies right now.

After another five minutes, I sighed at my painfully parched throat and asked, "Sweetness, what about your Cars movie? Or Monsters? Or Sleeping Beauty?"

She subtly shook her head without looking at me, and mumbled, "That's for babies…"

I squinted my eyes at her hunched over form, where she was knelt down in front of the media shelf. "Who told you that?" I asked, feeling a little more than irritated at her statement.

She grabbed another movie off the shelf, then turned to face me. "Marie."

When she was standing in front of me, holding out the dvd case for me to take, I stopped her and placed a reassuring kiss to her forehead. "Don't listen to her, baby girl. It's not for babies, it's for kids. I bought all those movies for you, angel. You can watch them whenever you want, however many times you want. Do you understand?"

She nodded, so I took the current dvd case out her hands then. I looked down and sighed in relief at the Forrest Gump title. I stood from the bed and nodded my approval to her.

She smiled brightly up at me. "I did good, huh Edward? There's no ucky R's, huh Edward?" she asked while rocking up onto her tippy toes, clearly proud of herself.

I chuckled at her display and placed a quick kiss to her forehead. "You did good," I assured her.

While I was putting the movie on for her, she crawled up onto the bed and asked for her 'doodle'. I sighed and grabbed it from the shelf in the closet. I gazed at her seriously and placed the pink toy beside her lap, but kept a firm grip on the handle.

"Angel love, why did you have this taken away from you?" I asked softly, but kept my 'stern face' in place, compelling her to keep eye contact with me.

She sucked on her bottom lip and lightly trailed her fingers across the white surface of the toy, seeming to think about her answer. "Um, b'cuz I throwed Marie's box…" she mumbled shyly with worried eyes.

I nodded. "And that's not going to happen anymore, is it baby…?" I gently prodded.

She slowly shook her head. "Mm-mm," she muttered in agreement.

I softened my features and gave her a small smile, then kissed her rosy cheek. "Okay, you can have your toy back, then."

She flashed me a beautiful smile and giggled, then hugged the pink MagnaDoodle to her chest, glad to have her drawing buddy back. "Kay."

She placed the MagnaDoodle in her lap and just as I was pressing PLAY on the dvd remote, my little girl's stomach began to growl.

"Edward?" she murmured, keeping her focus on her hand that was currently gliding the small drawing utensil across the white surface of her toy.

"Yes?"

"I'm hungry."

I nodded. "Esme is making your lunch right now, sweetheart."

She lifted her head to gaze at me curiously as the piano's melody at the beginning of the movie began playing through the flat screen's speakers.

"What's your mommy makin?"

I sat down next to her on the bed then. "Grilled cheese and tomato soup…"

"The red soup?" her voice going up an octave with her inquiry.

I nodded. "Mm-hmm, the red soup," I confirmed in a soft voice.

"That's the yummy soup," she told me conversationally.

I nodded. "I want you to be careful when you eat it, angel. It's going to be hot, so let it cool down first, before you put it in your mouth. Tell you what, I'll let Esme know to put a bit of milk in it for you, to help it cool faster," I told her.

Isabella paused her drawing hand and locked her now nervous eyes with mine. "Um…where will you be?" she asked quietly. Hesitantly.

I sighed. Isabella was very observant little girl. She knew something was going on without me even having to tell her. She knew that I was usually the one to accompany her at the table…and to make sure her food wasn't too hot or too cold for her liking.

"I have to leave for a little while, baby-" I was cut off by her gasp.

"Nooooo…" she whined.

I subtly nodded and swallowed against the burn in my throat. It was getting worse.

"Yes. I have to go get my lunch while you're eating yours, angel."

"Nooooo…" she whined again, setting her MagnaDoodle off to the side.

"Yes," I insisted and ignored how sad her eyes looked all of a sudden.

_Stay strong._

"Eat peanut butter and jellieeees…" she suggested in a whiny tone.

"I don't like those, baby," I reminded her.

"Take me witchyouuuu…" she requested in a whiny tone.

"No. You're going to stay here and play with Alice," I informed her, trying to keep my voice calm and reassuring.

"Noooo…" she whined as she began to cry.

_Damn it._

"Isabella, I will be back soon," I assured her.

"No, take me witchyouuuu…" she cried as she flopped back down onto the bed.

I sighed, the burn in my throat steeling my resolve. "You need to stay here," I told her in a firm tone as I started to get up off the bed.

She proceeded to throw a fit then, and I proceeded to try my best to ignore it.

She cried and kicked her legs down onto the mattress. Her little hands balled up into tiny fists. Soon her cries turned into sobs. She kept her watery stare on me the whole time.

I stood off to the side of the bed and watched, making sure she didn't accidentally roll her body off the bed, or something, with all of that agitated squirming.

I was quickly getting fed up with her tantrum. I needed her to stop, so that she could eat her lunch and I could leave.

I had stopped breathing four minutes ago. I really was cutting it close by still being here. I should have left while my Bella was still in therapy, but I just couldn't bear to. I needed to hold her just one more time before I left.

But now…because I had been acting like an insecure _little girl_ - I was now facing one. A whiny, clingy five year old, who seemed absolutely determined to not let me walk out of this room without making me feel thoroughly guilty about it.

"Isabella, stop it," I demanded quietly.

"Noooo…" she cried, tears streaming down her flushed, rosy cheeks.

I gritted my teeth against the anxiety tightening my chest. "That's enough, Isabella," I warned her.

She ignored me and kicked her right foot down onto the bed again. "T-take meee w-witchyouuu…" she sobbed out.

I sighed. "I'll be back soon."

She screamed then, frustrated that she wasn't getting her way.

I walked over to the side of the bed and leaned over to grasp her hip. After I turned her slightly on her side, I landed a firm swat to her bottom and repeated in a stern tone, "That's. Enough."

"Owwwwieee…" she cried.

I let go of her hip, and she rolled her body over in the opposite direction, laying on her stomach in the middle of the bed now. She continued to cry, and buried her face in the gold comforter.

"I wanna go witchyou," she whimpered through her cries, her voice muffled by the blanket on the bed.

_Ugh._

"I know angel, but you can't. I'm sorry," I told her in a soft, but determined voice.

I stood by silently, determined to wait until she was calm enough for me to leave. No matter how much my bloodlust burned my body, I couldn't leave her while she was crying.

Esme's thoughts informed me that my girl's lunch was ready. "Your food is ready, Isabella," I told her, hoping that the promise of food would calm her down.

"I don' want it. I wanna eat witchyouuu…" she cried.

I sighed.

_My clingy baby…_

Just when Carlisle and Jasper were going to come up here and make me leave to go hunt, Isabella quieted down. And that was a good thing, because if they would have grabbed me and tried to force me away from my crying little girl, I would have gotten violent in my protests. But, I guess that's why Jasper was on his way, as well, because they already knew that. He would have kept me calm until they got me outside, where I would have inevitably shot off towards the woods, all thoughts of a crying Isabella leaving my mind.

Isabella sniffled into the somewhat silence of the room. The movie, Forrest Gump, was still playing in the backround. She lifted her head from the blanket and pushed herself up off the bed.

"Fuckin crybaby…" Marie muttered quietly to herself.

I stayed still as a statue in my spot, and watched as Marie walked past me to go to the bathroom. While she was in there, she loudly blew her nose and washed her tear-stained face. When she came out, she smiled up at me and rocked up onto her tippy toes, by my side, to plant a chaste kiss on my tightly sealed lips.

"I'm hungry. What are we havin?"

I gave her a small smile. "Grilled cheese and tomato soup," I told her through slightly gritted teeth, trying my best to speak as little as possible, so that I wouldn't have to take another breath of fire down my throat.

She nodded. "Fuckawesome. Have fun with your lunch, and remember…don't play with your food!" she remarked cheekily with a wink, then walked away from me.

She left the room and I listened closely to her footfalls as she went downstairs and skipped her way into the dining room to eat her lunch. Everyone's thoughts assured me, almost simultaneously, that my girl would be fine while I left for a few hours to go hunt. I quickly padded my jean's side pocket, double checking for my cell phone, then smiled in relief and leapt gracefully out of my bedroom window.

Marie.

_What a lifesaver._

_

* * *

_

A/N:

I crave reviews.

Pathetic? Maybe. I don't care.

Leave me one, doll.

They make me fucking smile.

xoxo


	44. Missing

EPOV

_Hey, this is Bella. Leave me a message and I'll call you back… *BEEP*_

"Fuck…"

I leaned back on the tree stump and flipped my phone closed, staring at the little silver device curiously. That was the third time I had called my girl's phone and she didn't answer. I could understand Isabella not answering it, but surely Marie or my Bella would answer…unless she didn't have it with her. That was a possibility too.

I sighed and dialed my sister's number, trying like hell to rid myself of the growing anxiety in my chest. I needed to hear my angel's sweet voice, but she wasn't answering her phone.

_Why isn't she answering her damn phone?_

"Hello?"

"Alice, she's not answering her phone," I told my sister, not caring in the least that I was giving off creepy obsessive stalker vibes with my impatient statement.

"Edward…she's fine," Alice huffed with finality.

"I will be the judge of that, Alice. Let me talk to her."

"She's not here."

I think I just had a brain aneurysm, if that's even possible. "WHAT?" I roared, causing a flock of birds to flee from the treetops above me.

"Holy shit!" she squeaked.

"Alice…" I warned.

"I think I've gone deaf," Alice muttered distractedly off to the side, no doubt speaking to Jasper. I heard him laughing in the back round.

_Laughing?_

"Alice, where is she?" I demanded.

"Edward, calm down," she suggested lightly.

I ignored that ridiculous suggestion. "Where is she?" I asked, a bit more forcefully.

"I knew he would react like this," she whispered to someone.

"Alice, _goddamn_ it-"

"Calm down!" she demanded.

"WHERE IS SHE?"

"Oh my hell, Edward - she is with her friend!"

I furrowed my brow. "What?"

"Yes, brother. Relax and take-"

"What friend?" I demanded, interrupting her.

"Angela."

I sighed. "Okay, and _which one_ of my girls is with Angela at the moment? And _why_ isn't she answering her phone? Does she even _have_ it with her? Alice, I can't _believe_-"

"Will you shut up already? Edward, breathe, and let me talk. Just for a second."

"Fine," I acquiesced through gritted teeth.

"Marie left with Angela about two hours ago. Angela called while Marie was eating lunch and wanted to go see a movie and catch up. She misses her friend, Edward…they haven't seen each other in two weeks because of Bella's expulsion."

"Fine, but-"

"I said shut up! I'm talking."

_Ugh._

At my reluctant silence, she cheekily commented, "Good boy," to which I growled. She giggled.

I huffed in annoyance. "Alice, tell me she's alright…" I pleaded desperately.

"She's alright," she said simply.

I was not convinced. "I mean, have you _seen_ anything? What if Isabella-"

"She's fine, and that's why she hasn't answered her phone, genius. She's at the movie theater with her friend and no, Isabella hasn't come around. I would have seen it," she stated confidently.

I gritted my teeth. "No you wouldn't, Alice," I countered, running my hand through my hair in frustration.

"Yes, I-"

"They don't premeditate these things, it's not based on a decision," I said incredulously. "My girls come around sporadically…just _whenever_, on a fucking whim, Alice! There's no rhyme or reason to the shit, it just _is_, and Isabella could be in that fucking movie theatre right now, and I'm not there, and she could be scared-"

"Damn it…" she muttered, interrupting my panicked ramblings.

"_Why_ did you let her leave?" I demanded, yelling into the phone and pulling at my hair.

I heard a shuffling over the phone and a few seconds later, Carlisle voice came over the line. "Son, she is fine. She's out with her friends, let the poor girl have some fun while you are out hunting," he advised.

I clenched my jaw and glared down at my shoes. "I don't have a problem with her being out with friends, I have a fucking _problem_ with Isabella switching out while Marie is with her friends," I finished, standing from my spot on the ground and pacing. I couldn't sit still anymore.

"Mm-hmm, that's understandable. Have you tried calling her phone? I know she has it with her, I made sure of that before we let her walk out the door," he told me.

"Yes! Carlisle, I've phoned her _three_ times…" I informed him with desperation laced in my tone.

"Alright, well she is in the movie theatre right now, and they require that phones be silenced or turned off. No need to panic. Call her again, and leave a voicemail, instructing her to call you as soon as possible, and we will do the same. Also, you can try texting her," he reasoned.

I nodded. "I'll do that," I said quickly, and went to hang up the phone, but Carlisle's voice interrupted me before I could.

"Edward, she is fine. She is safe. Just calm down, alright? And if you do happen to get her on the phone, then remember to think _before_ you speak. Don't yell at the child. She's just out having a bit of fun…like a _normal_ teenage girl. Let her have some normalcy in her life."

I furrowed my brow in irritation and stopped pacing. I slowly shook my head in disbelief at his odd advice. "I'm not…_Jesus_, Carlisle, I'm not going to _yell_ at her! And even if I was, that's none of your business. But she's not in trouble for going out with friends...I'm just worried, and rightfully so. You know damn well that it could be Isabella in that movie theatre right now, _not_ Marie."

"Right…" Carlisle agreed in a worried tone.

"And Marie may not need me every fucking minute of the day, but Isabella sure as hell does. She needs me for everything, looks to me for _everything_! Jesus Christ, she even asks me permission to use the bathroom! And she doesn't know any of Bella and Marie's friends, she hates strangers -" I stated in a panicked voice, before Carlisle interrupted me again.

"Edward-"

My breath hitched as I envisioned my little girl looking lost and scared, searching for me in a dark movie theatre, only to find that I'm not there. I clenched my eyes shut and hissed. This is what I get for trusting my family with my mate. They let her _leave_.

"Edward, she is fine," he assured me in a gentle tone.

I ignored it, though. No one knew for a fact that my mate was _fine_. I hated that fucking word.

"Goddamn it, I need to get home," I stated in a rushed voice.

"Edward, wait!" he commanded, all business now. In that moment, I knew that he was no longer my friendly father and mentor, but my vampire coven Sire.

_Fuck my life._

I did not have time for this particular show of authority at the moment. He would not stand in the way of me getting to my mate.

"What?" I demanded.

"Have you fed properly?"

"Yes," I replied curtly.

"Don't half-ass it son. We've got things under control over here. Esme is on her way to that movie theatre right now. Do _not_ irrationally jump to conclusions," he told me.

"I'm not," I stated.

"And what was on today's menu?" he asked, his voice relaxing out of alpha-mode, or whatever the hell that shit was.

I rolled my eyes. "Three dear, one elk," I informed him quickly, but still letting my annoyance leak through my tone.

He sighed into the phone. "Alright son, calm down, and I'll see you when you get here," I heard him tell me before I hung up.

"You fucking calm down," I grumbled under my breath and pressed the speed dial for my Bella's phone, once again.

_*RING*_

I began pacing. Again.

_*RING*_

I looked up towards the sky. "Please, God…let her be alright," I whispered desperately to the clouds above me.

_*RING*_

I sighed and halted my rushed steps. "Answer, answer, answer…" I pleaded quietly to myself.

_*RING*_

_Hey, this is Bella…_

I groaned and punched the tree to my side, causing more birds to flee. I watched as three squirrels raced across the branches to take up residence in the neighboring treetops.

_…Leave me a message and I'll call you back *BEEP*_

I swallowed back venom and tried to relax my throat muscles before I spoke into the phone.

"Hey, sweetheart…I heard you were out with Angela. I just wanted to call and talk to you…see how things were going. Alice told me that you were at the movie theatre…I hope you're having fun, angel. Call me as soon as you can, okay baby? I miss you and I love you. I'll talk to you soon, love. Bye."

I pressed the end button and clenched my jaw as I brought the phone's message box up to send her a text message.

**Call me. I love you.**

After I hit send, I flipped my phone closed and stuck it in my pocket, then took off in a run, speeding through the woods back to my house.

I arrived home two hours later, still with no call from my girl. I was worried and I was stressed. I wanted to scream and rip my hair out. I bounded up the porch steps and rushed in through the front door, just barely refraining from ripping it off it's hinges, and accidentally bumped into Jasper before I could tone down my speed.

"Is she here?" I asked Jasper quickly, in our unique rushed frequency.

His fake calm immediately started to wash over me, but I didn't want or need the distraction. I groaned, frustrated. "Jasper, please…"

"No. She's not," he stated quietly.

I immediately reached for my phone and dialed my Bella's cell number again, only to get her voicemail. Again.

"Goddamn it!" I roared, and threw my phone.

Carlisle caught it before it could smash to pieces against the wall, and smirked as he handed it back to me. "Calm down, son."

"Calm down? You want me to _calm down_?" I asked incredulously, while shoving Jasper's hand off my shoulder. "How can you even ask that of me? My mate is _not_ here! She's _not_ by my side! I thought you said Esme was going to the theatre to pick her up…" I trailed off accusingly.

Carlisle nodded. "She did. The movie was over and she had already left when Esme arrived, though."

"Then where _is_ she? Alice!" I called out frantically.

"Edward, you must stop yelling!" Jasper admonished me as Alice suddenly appeared at his side, looking a little guilty.

She was blocking her thoughts from me.

"Alice…please, tell me-"

"Edward, I'm sorry. Her future disappeared over two hours ago," she informed me calmly, but with resignation. "You know what that means…" she trailed off suggestively.

I growled. I _did_ know what that meant.

_La Push. Werewolves._

"Son, there's nothing we can do but wait. You know this…"

"The hell there isn't-"

"Don't do anything rash," Carlisle instructed, interrupting me.

I stared him down with defiance. "I'll do whatever the hell it takes-"

_*RING*_

I ripped my phone back out of my pocket and forcefully stuck it to my ear. "Hello?"

"Wow, babe. Thirty-eight missed calls. I'm like, famous or something, huh?" Marie remarked cheekily.

"Marie…" I breathed out a sigh of relief. Every tense muscle in my body relaxed at the sound of her beautiful voice.

"Yeah?"

"Where are you?"

"I'm with Jake. Hey, Edward?"

I went quiet for a minute, trying to stomp down my anger at her being with that dog. I swallowed back some venom. "Yes?" I replied as calmly as I could.

"Bell's phone says that I have some voicemails and a bunch of missed calls. Um, I read the texts, and all of 'em told me to call you, loverrrr, so I am. And I cleared the missed calls, but I can't figure out how to check the damn voicemails. And the phone is stuck on fucking vibrate...believe me, it's not as sexy as it sounds. Kind of annoying, really. Ang put it on vibrate while we were at the fuckawesome movies, but now I don't know how to take it off. The phone's been in my bag, that's why I missed all your calls. I didn't hear 'em, but I'm gonna keep the phone in my pocket now, so whenever someone calls, my bum will buzz and then when-"

"Marie, I want you to come home. Come home now," I told her.

"I know…." she trailed off as I heard some murmured talking going on in the back round. Marie huffed. "Ugh, here…Jake wants to talk to you."

"Alright," I said, barely suppressing a growl.

Jacob's breathless panting sounded in my ear then. I held the phone away from my face and grimaced. "We just left but I can't drive all the way out to your crypt, Cullen, I need-"

"That's fine. I'm on my way, I'll meet you at the border. Put Marie back on the phone," I replied in a curt tone, not wanting to hear that mutt's voice anymore. Just the sound of it made my muscles coil and tense.

I waited for my girl's voice to come back over the line as I turned and made my way back out the front door. I was eager to get to my mate, so I ran to my car and had it started up by the time all the shuffling noises on the phone stopped, signaling Marie's return.

"Yeah?"

"Marie, you left to go to a movie with Angela, so how did you end up in La Push?" I asked as I backed out of the garage, then put my car in first gear and sped off down the road towards town.

"Um, Ang came out here after the movie to hang out with her boy toy, Ben. He was at Danny's house, because he stayed the night last night. I said I wasn't sure if you were home yet, so I tagged along to visit my Jake while she was gettin pounded from behind in the back room by Ben. Why?"

I exhaled sharply.

_Marie…always so amazingly…**blunt**._

"Who is Danny?"

"Jake's neighbor."

"Marie, did you forget what I told you about La Push? About how you were not allowed to go there anymore? And if you wanted to visit with Jacob, then he would have to come see you, and not the other way around?" I asked, my patience wearing thin through my voice.

Marie was silent for a minute. "Am I in trouble, or something?" she hedged. When I didn't answer, she went on. "God, Edward…I'm not a child. I'm not a baby, like Isabella. I don't _need_ rules," she stated indignantly.

I squeezed the steering wheel tighter. "We'll talk about that when I get you back home, where you belong," I stated quietly through gritted teeth.

"Ow! Fuck, Jake watch it-"

"What happened?" I yelled into the phone and stomped on the gas pedal.

"Jake was watching the road and didn't pay attention to where the fuck his hand was goin, so he accidentally brushed against my cheek when he was reaching back to put his hand on my headrest," she explained casually.

I furrowed my brow in confusion. "And that would hurt, because…"

"Because I got in a fight. Yeah, that's why Jake can't take me all the way home. He's gotta get back and give that Leah bitch a ride to the hospital because he's the only one at the house with a working ve-hi-cle right now. That's the right word, right?" she muttered distractedly. "Vehicle?"

"Yeah," I heard Jacob answer her.

"What? You got in a _fight_?"

"Duh, that's what I just said. Keep up, weren't you listenin-"

"Don't be a smartass, Marie. Now is _not_ the time. Explain what happened," I demanded as I made a sharp left turn.

"Right. So we're sittin on the couch and me and Jake are sharing a blunt, when Leah wakes up and comes into the living room. The bitch _just_ woke up. It's like five in the afternoon and her ugly, zombie ass comes stalkin into the room, and wants to partake in our weedy goodness, but I don't share with people I don't like, so Jake tells her snotty ass to roll her own damn toker. So she's all, "fine, whatever", and grabs the stash on the coffee table, but it's all seedy, so it takes her a minute to pick all that shit out before she rolls the actual joint…"

_Okay, calm down. Just calm the fuck down. Don't overreact. You love her, no matter what. You love her. No matter how reckless she is. No matter how many rules she breaks….or how many joints she rolls…_

"…and so then she starts goin on about how she thinks I'm fuckin her man! Just because I use'ta help out with sellin his stash, does not mean I'm letting him take advantage of the goods. I mean, come the fuck on! So I'm all "Bitch, do I look like I want to fuck a skeezy piece of ass like that?" But then she takes it as some kind of fucking insult, because I called her boyfriend 'skeezy'. Oh, boo-fuckin-hoo, he _is_ skeezy. He's a goddamn _drug dealer_, for Christ sakes - who'd wanna hit that? Not me, that's for damn sure, and I'm telling the motherfucking truth, I'm not a goddamn liar, but whatever. So then she wants to come at me, defending her man's honor or some shit, and I'm all for it. I get a big ass grin on my face as I say, "Alright, bring it on, bitch. Let's see what you got…"

"Oh no," I grumbled quietly to myself, almost to the Quileute reservation border now.

"Right, yeah…so, to make a long fuckin story short - I have a bruised jaw and a cut on my lip 'cause that bitch fights with rings on. And she has a black eye, and maybe a few cracked ribs, but I think they might just be bruised…" she hedged.

"Is that all?" I asked quietly, cringing as I awaited her answer.

"No, she also has two missing teeth, courtesy of our darling little Isabella-"

"What?" I shouted in disbelief.

_My baby?_

Marie laughed. "Yeah, you should've seen her, Edward. That little one did me proud. I didn't let her have all the fun though, because it was _my_ fight, but she did have some fun playin knock-down-drag-out with that skank. She threw four quick jabs to Leah's face, almost like she _knew_ it would knock her teeth out. Like, that's what she was aiming for. It worked, too…" she finished with a giggle.

"But you were hurt?" I asked in concern.

"Yeah, my cheek and my lip. Edward, we're here…I miss you, where you at?"

"I'm almost there, sweetheart," I placated her, turning down a dirt road.

I was extremely angry with her right now, but I was more worried than anything. I had missed her all afternoon, and I had been stressing out for the passed three hours on her whereabouts, and now I learn that she'd been hurt?

I could kill Jacob for not preventing this. And I _would_ kill this Leah person. If she thought that she could put her hands on my precious angel without feeling my wrath, then she was obviously very stupid. Everyone on their land knew what I was. They all knew that Bella was with me…that she was my mate. How did this bitch by the name of 'Leah' not know that? And if she did, she obviously didn't care about any kind of retaliation, or she was just too fried on drugs to think twice about it.

"Let me talk to Jacob," I instructed.

"Kay…Edward wants to talk to you," Marie muttered, handing over the phone.

"Yeah, what?" Jacob asked, irritation laced in his tone.

"How could you let this happen?" I hissed at him.

"Hey, you're lucky I was there, Cullen! Quil and I had to pull the girls off of each other while Seth shouted in the back round, "Just throw some Jello on 'em!" Fuck you. If it weren't for me, then Marie would be facing jail time right about now. I threatened Leah with some more missing teeth if she even thought about reporting my girl to the police once I got her to the damn hospital. I wouldn't even be taking her in, but she has to get X-rays and shit…see about going to a dentist for her mouth. Marie and that other one did a number on her face, man," he informed me just as I pulled up next to his red car.

I flipped my phone closed, hanging up on him, and I kept my eyes focused on him with a hard glare. He would pay for that 'my girl' comment. We stared at each other for a few seconds through our respective windshields, before _my_ girl turned around and noticed my car parked in front of them. My eyes flicked over to hers and I softened my gaze as I quickly got out of my car.

I strolled over to Jacob's vehicle and wrenched open the passenger door where my angel sat, patiently waiting for me. I ducked down and hooked my hands under her shoulders. Without looking at Jacob, I lifted her out of the seat and brought her to my chest, keeping her in my tight embrace as I relished in her warmth. I wanted to coat myself in the comfort of her warmth and sweet freesia scent, but was unable to, because when I breathed in, I immediately noticed marijuana and the fucking werewolf stench mixed in with her heavenly aroma. I stiffened slightly as frustration overwhelmed me. My mate needed a bath. I would not be getting the comfort I needed until she washed that stink off.

I slightly flared my nostrils in distaste and loosened my grip to pull her back and get a good look at her. She remained quiet while my eyes critically scanned her face for any damage. I noticed the bruise she had mentioned. It lined her left jaw, closer to her ear, than her chin. And there was a slight cut, coated in dried blood on her lower lip, by the left corner of her mouth. I subtly growled and lightly ran my thumb over her puffy pink lip.

"Do you have everything?" I asked in a quiet voice.

She nodded and pointed to the strap of her purse hanging off her right shoulder.

I nodded. "Your phone?"

She reached behind her and patted her back pocket, next to my forearm.

I nodded and shut Jacob's car door. "Okay, baby…let's go."

I kissed her forehead, then palmed her bruised left cheek with my cool hand, coaxing her head down to it's spot on my shoulder. I kept her held tightly to me and started walking back towards my car, quickly heading over to the passenger side.

"This will never happen again…" I told her as I reached down and opened the car door. I bent down and eventually squatted as I shifted her body away from mine, and placed her in the seat. After I had her all buckled in, I paused to fix her with a hard stare. "It is past your dinner time, Marie. When we get home, you will eat the food that Esme has prepared for you, and then you will take a shower and get ready for bed -" she gasped and furrowed her brow, looking for all the world like she was going to protest, but I held up a finger and gently pressed it to her slightly swollen lips to stop her. "I don't want to hear it," I said in a curt tone. "You will do as your told, there will be no arguing. You're already in enough trouble as it is."

She scowled at me then, and looked away to glare straight ahead. She focused her gaze out the windshield as she crossed her arms over her chest, her face fixed into an adorable pout.

"Good girl," I commented, before I kissed her bruised cheek and stood from my crouched position by her door, shutting it with a soft click.

Jacob had already sped off, back to his home when I made my way around to the driver's seat and got in. I started the car back up and turned us around, intent on going back home to deal with my indignant mate.

The car was completely silent, neither one of us spoke. There was no music, she would not be singing. I was very angry and I needed to concentrate on calming the fuck down. Her tainted scent wasn't helping matters any, so I cracked the windows and held my breath. She huffed a few times, fidgeting and shuffling her feet on the floorboard. We were almost to the mansion when I decided to take the bait and break the tense silence.

"What is it?" I asked in an eerily calm voice…I certainly didn't _feel_ calm.

"It's 6:38 Edward," she whined.

"So?" I asked with raised eyebrows.

"It's too fuckin early to go to bed," she stated petulantly.

I subtly shook my head. "I didn't say you were going to bed, Marie. I said you needed to _get ready_ for bed. There's a difference."

"Why the hell am I in trouble anyway?"

"Watch your attitude Marie," I warned through gritted teeth. At her silence, I continued. "We will talk about that later…after you've eaten and are ready for bed."

"Why not now?"

"That's enough for now…no more questions," I stated with finality, my patience wearing thin.

She huffed again and I rolled my eyes. She'd better lay off that attitude if she knew what was good for her. While I found it adorable and endearing at times, _now_ was certainly not one of those times.

I pulled into the garage four minutes later, and angled my body to face her as I pulled my keys out of the ignition. "Remember…dinner, then a shower. We will talk after you are fed and ready for bed," I reminded her.

She subtly nodded, not making eye contact with me.

"Go," I instructed, and watched as she opened the car door, got out, then slammed it shut. She stomped her way over to the garage door leading into the house and swung it open before she went inside.

I stayed in my car just so that I wouldn't give in to the temptation to bust her ass right then and there for slamming my car door and stomping around like an indignant little brat. I took a few calming breaths and waited until I _knew_ she was sitting at the dining room table, to get out of my car.

Instead of sitting at the table with her, I went up to our bedroom and took a quick shower. I was in and out in less than three minutes. I just needed to wash the forest debris off and change into some clean clothes. I kept my mind focused on Alice's so that I could monitor my mate's progress with her dinner downstairs, as I dressed in the usual sleepwear. Tonight I chose some black cotton pants and a black cotton wife beater. I noticed that Marie was unusually quiet while she ate her pizza slice, and Alice was quiet as well.

From everyone's thoughts, I could tell that the entire family was somewhat upset with my mate right now. She had us all frantic and worried for an entire afternoon. All so that she could hang out with Jacob on the reservation while she had the chance. I don't believe for a second that she didn't know what she did was wrong. Between going to La Push, smoking, and fighting, she can't say that she didn't break at least one rule. There's no way she forgot about those rules…granted, she may have forgotten some, but not those three in particular, and certainly not at the same time.

While Alice continued to ensure Marie ate all of her food, I decided to pick out some pajamas for her to wear after her shower. After some debate, I chose a soft cotton light-blue nightgown that would come down to her mid-thigh. It was light and free-flowing, with thin shoulder straps. She would look beautiful in it. I chose a pair of blue lace panties to go with it, even though she wouldn't need them and I doubt she would even want them on after I was through with her.

I noticed then, that the extra large recliner was placed in the corner of my bedroom. It was wide enough to seat two people comfortably…I remember when we bought it a few years ago from a store called Garden Ridge. It was Alice's favorite seat in the whole house, but when we moved here to Forks, it was placed in the basement because it didn't match the new living room furniture. The color scheme downstairs seems to be white and cream colors. This chair is a light tan color, and it goes surprisingly well with the Maplewood furniture in our bedroom.

I furrowed my brow, trying to figure out who brought it up here, and why, but soon got my answer from Esme's thoughts. She was thinking of Isabella and how she liked to be rocked to sleep at times. I smiled and whispered a quick, "Thank you", to my mother, then went and sat down on it, keeping Marie's pajamas in my hand. I angled the rocking recliner to face the TV for future use. I knew Isabella would enjoy me rocking her in this thing while she watched one of her Disney movies on the flat screen.

A few minutes later, Marie came strolling into the bedroom. Before she could do anything else, I instructed, "Come here."

She hesitated in the doorway for a moment, but eventually walked over to where I was sitting in the recliner.

"Where'd the fuckawesome new chair come from?" she asked, eyeing it curiously.

"The basement," I informed her as I held out her nightgown. "Here, trade me," I suggested lightly.

"Trade you what?"

"Give me your phone."

She reached into her jeans pocket and retrieved my Bella's cell phone, then handed it over and took the sleepwear from my hand. I looked down at the little cell phone and murmured, "Go take your shower."

She didn't respond, just turned and quickly walked into the bathroom. While she was taking her shower and singing along to Paramore's 'Misery Business', I tried my best to ignore the sounds of her dancing around the tub and the water's spray splashing off of her body. I felt a small smile creep onto my face as I imagined her using the shampoo bottle as a microphone, but quickly banished that thought from my head and turned my attention back to my new task at hand.

I went through her call history list and found that all thirty-eight missed calls were from me and my family. She had five voicemails and several already read text messages, also all from myself or my family. I sighed and relaxed into the soft micro-fiber recliner, rocking it a bit. I could start to smell my angel's heavenly concentrated scent. She was clean now…saturated and wet from her shower. I took deep whiffs of it, gulping down my addiction, while I listened to her dress and brush her teeth.

When the bathroom door opened, letting foggy steam creep into the air in the bedroom, I crooked my finger at my girl, silently telling her to come to me. She did, without hesitation this time, and she had her hairbrush in her hand. She took her position on my lap and I let the task of brushing her damp hair relax me even further.

"Marie…" I spoke into the quiet of the room after a few minutes of silence.

"Yeah?"

"I missed you."

"I missed you, too."

I wrapped my free arm around her waist and hugged her to me for a moment. "I was so worried about you," I murmured into the warm skin behind her ear.

"Why?"

I started rocking us then. "Because you were supposed to come straight home after your movie with Angela. When none of us could get a hold of you on the cell phone, we all just sort of panicked…" I trailed off as I stopped the slight rocking motion and pulled back to focus on her hair again.

"I'm fine, though. I didn't hear the fuckin phone ring because it was on vibrate," she offered.

I nodded and smoothed some hair behind her ear. "I know, but you still should have come home after the movie. You know that you went against everyone's wishes and broke more than one rule today," I told her, my voice hardening at the end of my statement.

She subtly shook her head. "Edward, I don't need rules. I'm not a child," she insisted.

I didn't reply to that remark, instead I just paused my brush strokes and hit the voicemail button on the cell phone, turning it on speaker. I put my mouth to her ear then. "We were all _very_ worried about you," I repeated in a firm tone.

I sat back in the recliner and gently brushed the long hair down her back as the messages began to play.

"You have…five new messages," came the operator's voice over the line.

_*BEEP*_

"Hey, sweetheart…I heard you were out with Angela. I just wanted to call and talk to you…see how things were going. Alice told me that you were at the movie theatre…I hope you're having fun, angel. Call me as soon as you can, okay baby? I miss you and I love you. I'll talk to you soon, love. Bye."

_*BEEP*_

"Hello dear, it's Doctor Dad just calling to remind you to have fun while you're out, and to please call Edward, or one of us, when your movie is over."

_*BEEP*_

"Hey darlin', how ya doin…um, give us a call. Edward sure misses ya and Alice keeps talkin' about makeovers, or nails, or sumthin or other. Alright, well, I'll see ya later, sis."

_*BEEP*_

"Hey chick! Call me! Oh yeah, and Edward keeps buggin us about where you're at. I told him you were okay, just at the movies with that girl from school. Anyway, call me back and let me know you're okay! I love you girl."

_*BEEP*_

"Sweetheart, I'm at the movie theatre. I wanted to come pick you up so your friend wouldn't have to bother with bringing you home, but it looks as though you're not here. I must have just missed you…well, I hope you're alright dear. Call me, or Edward, as soon as possible, please. We're beginning to worry. Okay. Oh, and have fun! That girl seems really nice…maybe she can come over and visit once in a while, hmm? Alright, well we'll discuss that later. I'll see you soon."

_*BEEP*_

"To delete your messages, press seven…to save, press ni-" I hung up the phone then, and set the hairbrush down on the desk to my right.

"I didn't mean to worry everyone…" Marie mumbled quietly.

"I know, but that doesn't change the fact that you _did_, and you did it so that you could break the rules."

She twisted her body around to face with me a huff. "I don't need-" she started, but I interrupted her.

"Yes. You. Do. You _need_ rules, Marie, possibly more than Isabella needs them," I insisted, my 'stern face' in place.

I softened my gaze at the sight of her bruised cheek, though. I reached up and gently cupped it in my cool hand with a sigh. "If you had followed your simple rules, then this would have never happened," I informed her in a slightly strained voice, lightly running my thumb over her puffy bottom lip.

She subtly shook her head. "I'm fine," she insisted in a light whisper.

I softly patted her bottom then. I'd had enough of this conversation. "Get up."

She stood then, and I followed suit. When she turned to look at me questioningly, I stated the obvious.

"You know you're in trouble."

She gritted her teeth and squared her shoulders, then subtly nodded at me.

It became very obvious to me, in that moment, that she was going to accept her punishment without putting up a fight, but she was still very nervous about it. I could smell her adrenaline and see her worried eyes. I squinted my own eyes at her, wondering how long that determination would last.

I walked over to the edge of the bed. "I'm going into the bathroom for a minute. When I come out, I want you bent over the bed…right here…" I instructed, pointing to the spot where I wanted her to lay.

She looked at the spot, then turned her stare on me. "Edward, how many goddamn times do I have to tell you? I'm not a fuckin child, I don't need a spankin," she stated with finality.

_So much for that determination…_

I glared at her. "I'm not going to repeat myself. You'd better be in this spot when I come out of the bathroom. You won't like it if I have to put you into position," I threatened, then turned and casually walked off to the bathroom.

I stayed in there for a minute, steeling my resolve and giving Marie a moment to compose herself and comply with my request. My family's thoughts were actually encouraging me, especially Jasper's. He was angry with Marie for making him deal with our stressed emotions today…not to mention, Marie had made Alice worry, and that was just unacceptable to him. He was understandably upset when his mate was upset.

I grabbed the small box of tissues and the bottle of lotion off the counter, then took a few calming breaths. I heard the mattress slightly creak then, signaling Marie had decided to cooperate for the time being. After one more pull of her lingering wet scent in the steamy bathroom, I went back into the bedroom.

Marie was obediently laying in the designated spot on the bed, with her head turned to the side, her bruised cheek facing me. I set both items down on the desk, and silently stepped up behind her bent over form. Her little feet slightly dangled in the air, just a few inches above the ground by the bed frame.

"Marie…"

She jumped slightly at the sound of my voice. "Hmm?"

I noticed the now-familiar angry scowl on her face. Her eyes were squinted into a glare, and her pink lips were pursed. She obviously thought that this was an injustice…completely unfair. More proof that she has a child's mind. If she were really 'grown', then she would realize the error of her ways and take her punishment in stride. But that doesn't appear to be the case…at least not today, anyway.

"You _will_ keep your hands out of my way. Tuck them underneath you and keep them there," I instructed, trying to keep my voice soft, but firm.

She didn't speak, but complied nonetheless. She lifted her midsection for a second to cross her arms under her belly, effectively keeping her hands pinned between her body and the mattress.

I gently lifted her pretty blue nightgown then, letting the fabric softly skim along her upper thighs until it was gathered up onto the small of her back. I sighed and tried to focus on this daunting task, but seeing her delectable little bottom framed in those tiny blue lace panties was not helping. At all. I figured some tears would help with my situation, but I really didn't want to make her cry. I guess we were past that point, though. The tears would come eventually, it was inevitable. I furrowed my brow and swallowed back some venom, letting my fingertips lightly trail along the curve off her ass while I spoke to her softly. Almost conversationally.

"When I ask you a question, I expect an answer, do you understand?"

When she just nodded her head against the mattress, I replaced my gentle fingertips with a sharp smack to her ass.

She gasped, "Yes."

"Good. Now, why are you in this position, Marie?"

"I don't know," she huffed indignantly, that adorable scowl still remaining on her face.

_Wrong answer, sweetie._

_*smack*_ "You don't know?" I asked in mock concern.

"No," she mumbled.

"Well, let me remind you, angel…" _*smack*_

She gasped again and bit her lip, but otherwise remained silent.

"You _belong_ to me, your body is _mine_ to do with as I see fit." _*smack*_

She clenched her eyes shut.

"You are mine to protect." _*smack*_

"You are mine to punish." _*smack*_

"And you are mine to pleasure." _*smack*_

"Right now, you need to me punish." _*smack*_ "Right, lovely? You need me to correct some of your bad behavior?" I prodded.

She whimpered and her eyes shot back open.

"You were a very naughty little girl today, Marie," I admonished in a low voice. _*smack*_

"First, you went to the Quileute Reservation." _*smack*_

"Then, you smoked some marijuana." _*smack*_

"Then, you got into a fight." _*smack*_

"Sound familiar, baby?" _*smack*_

She gasped again, and her teeth finally released her swollen bottom lip. "Fuck," she whimpered in a panted breath.

I slowly slid her panties down to the tops of her thighs, and noticed the already slight pink tinge to her skin. After assuring myself that she was fine, I continued on with her punishment, choosing to leave her bottom bare for the remainder of it.

_*smack*_ "I asked you a question."

She wiggled around a bit. "Edwaaard, my panties-"

_*smack*_ "Answer the question."

She whimpered, "Yes."

"Good. And, as I've said before, princess…if I want to spank you with your panties down, there's not a fuckin thing you can do about it." _*smack*_ "Understand?" _*smack*_

She started to cry then. "Y-yesss."

I nodded to myself. Tears _did_ help. "Right. I'm glad we got that all straightened out. Now I'll ask you again…why are you in this position?"

"Because I went to see Jake and I got high and I punched that skanky hoe right in her fugly face," she said in a rushed voice right before the first sob tore through her throat.

_Good girl._

"That's right. And are you willing to cooperate now?" _*smack*_

"Yes," she cried.

"Why?" _*smack*_ "Why now, and not before?"

"B'cuz I don't want you to fuckin spank me anymore," she stated truthfully in a shaky voice, trying to hold back her small sobs now.

_*smack*_ "Hurts, does it?"

"Yes!" she yelled as another sob slipped through her lips.

I peeked down to her rounded flesh again. I hadn't been hitting her hard at all…there was barely any force behind my hand, but I knew it would hurt her regardless. When my eyes were graced with her slightly blushed bottom, I decided that I could finish. She was fine.

_*smack*_ "Don't worry, kitten…you can handle it," I assured her.

"Nooo…" she cried.

_*smack*_ "Oh, yes," I stated in a casual tone.

She sobbed again and turned her face to muffle her cries into the gold comforter.

"My girl is tough." _*smack*_

"Independent." _*smack*_

"She doesn't need rules…" I trailed off. _*smack*_

"Because she's not a child." _*smack*_

Marie turned her face back to the side again, and gasped for air between her cries. I could see the salty tears streaming down her bruised cheek, and hoped that this would be over soon. Once I made my point and she learned her lesson, then this would all be over and I could cuddle her and make it all better. But as for now...

_*smack*_ "Isn't that right, love?"

"Yes…" she mumbled through her cries.

I leaned over her bent over form then, and gently wiped away some tears from her cheek with my cool fingers. I whispered in her ear, "Then why are you getting spanked like one?"

I straightened back up as she replied, "Because you're fuckin mean."

_Aw._

_*smack*_ "Nope, try again," I quipped.

She let out a frustrated cry and wiggled around a bit.

_*smack*_

She groaned and swallowed back a sob. "Because I acted like a goddamn child," she finally answered.

"You're so smart," I remarked cheekily.

"Whatever," she grumbled into the blanket, sniffling and continuing to cry.

"So, going to the Quileute Reservation, smoking marijuana, and fighting with that girl…why are those activities against the rules?"

Instead of answering me, she balled up her tiny fists and let out another sob.

_*smack*_

"Because you fuckin said so, and I could go to the slammer for drugs and fighting," she squeaked out in a rushed voice before I could land another swat to her bottom.

I nodded. _*smack*_ "Hmmm…so you do know these things are wrong, and why they are wrong, but you still chose to do them anyway?" I voiced out loud.

She groaned. "Ugh…fuck my life," she muttered, then cried out as I spanked her again.

_*smack*_ "Why is that?"

"I d-don't know, I jussst d-did," she stuttered around a sob.

_*smack*_ "Are you going to do it again?" _*smack*_ "Defy me again?"

"Nooo…" she groaned in pain.

_*smack*_ "Are you sure?"

She gasped. "Edwaaard, owwie…st-stop," she whimpered.

I furrowed my brow. "Isabella…" I muttered softly, recognizing her usual plea for me to stop a spanking.

When she started to roll onto her side, I placed my hand on the small of her back to keep her still. "You stay still, young lady," I instructed in a firm tone.

"Whyyyy?" she cried.

_*smack*_ "Why did you hit that girl?"

She burrowed her face in the gold comforter and cried into it.

"Answer me…" I warned.

"Sh-sheee, she hit us first!" she insisted with a sob.

I nodded and lightly ran my cool fingertips over her sore bottom. "Tell me what happened, baby…" I coaxed gently.

She screamed then, frustrated. "Edward, I'm fuckin sorry, okay? I'm sorry! I swear I won't toke on a joint anymore and I won't go see Jake," Marie vehemently promised.

I sighed, "Good girl."

_Finally._

"I'm sorry…" Marie brokenly mumbled around sobs.

"Okay," I said softly.

"S-s-sorry…" she repeated.

I continued my fingertips trail across her hot flesh as I bent down and kissed her bruised cheek. I used my free hand to brush some stray strands of hair out of her eyes and face, sweeping them behind her delicate little ear. She cried as I kissed her cheek three more times, then let my lips linger on her temple.

"Stay still, baby," I whispered in her ear.

She nodded in response, so I straightened back up and went to the desk for what I like to call, 'The Aftercare Kit'; lotion and a box of tissues.

I placed the tissues by her head so that she could use them at her leisure while I went to work on her tender pink flesh. I squirted a dime-size amount of lotion into my marble hand and began slowly rubbing it into her sore skin.

I watched as she blew her nose and wiped the tears away from her eyes, chin, and cheeks. Her throat constricted in it's efforts to swallow back sobs. After a few minutes, her tense body began to relax and her breathing began to even out as I continued my soothing touch, rubbing the hurt out for her.

When I was done, I slid her lacey panties the rest of the way down her legs. She whimpered in protest, but I shushed her and folded them into a tiny little blue square, then placed them on the bed, ready for her to put back on when she was ready. I smiled down at her shiny pink bottom then. It was so pretty.

_Mine._

After one last peek, I gently slid the soft fabric of her nightgown back down and smoothed it over the tops of her thighs. I slowly rolled her over onto her back then, and quickly grabbed a tissue to clean up the wet mess that was left on her right cheek. When I was done, I balled up the tissue and reached for my girl.

"C'mere baby," I said softly, as I hooked my hand underneath her shoulders and shoulder blades, then lifted her off the bed with ease. I brought her to my chest and tried to ignore the direct heat coming from her sex as she pressed it directly into my abdomen when she wrapped her legs around my waist.

_Mmm, so fucking warm…_

Now is **not** the time.

Right.

I swallowed back some lust-induced venom and carried my mate into the bathroom. I flicked the light switch on and kissed Marie's forehead.

"I'm going to sit you down on the counter, okay love?"

She nodded and sniffled. When I sat her down on the cool marble countertop, she whimpered quietly, cringing a bit in pain. I cupped her bruised cheek in my palm and lightly kissed her pouty pink lips.

"Shhh…" I shushed her, running the pad of my thumb along the small cut on her lip.

She nodded and sighed while I reached for a soft washcloth from the linen shelf. After I ran hot water over it, I wrung it out and brought it to Marie's flushed, tear-stained face. I gently wiped her skin, being extra careful when I reached the bruise on her lower jaw by her left ear.

After she blew her nose one last time, I fished into the drawers in search of the Neosporin and some Q-tips. Once I found them, I used the soft Q-tip head to spread the clear creamy substance onto the small cut at the corner of her mouth. It was already beginning to scab over.

"Does it hurt?" I murmured quietly into the silence of the room, concentrating on my task.

I withdrew the Q-tip from her lip as she subtly nodded. I kissed her forehead and picked her up, bringing her back to my chest. She laid her right cheek on my shoulder and mumbled, "Will you walk me?"

"Pace?"

"Yeah…fuckin pace," she muttered in a tired voice.

"Yes. In fact, that's just what I was getting ready to do," I assured her as I walked out of the bathroom, flipping off the light switch on my way out.

"Kay."

And so it began. I took to the usual pacing path by the foot of the bed, in front of the dresser and flat screen TV. I used my index finger to lightly trace circles and hearts along her spine. I could feel it easily through the thin barrier of her nightgown and delicate skin. I didn't like that. Every time I held her, or even looked at her, I was reminded of how small and underweight she actually was.

I sighed, knowing that there was nothing I could do, but keep up the occasional protein shake and feed her three complete, balanced meals a day. I would weigh her in three days to check her progress…or, Carlisle would, anyway. And soon, she would be introduced to the room next door; the weight room. I smiled, imagining her going to town on the punching bag and playing with all the 'fuckawesome cool new machines'. That's what Jasper said she had called the gym equipment, this afternoon while I was away hunting.

"Edward I can still see Jake, though, right?" she asked me in a small voice that cracked.

She was so tired. This was why I wanted her to be ready for bed before I started her punishment. I knew it would wear her out.

"Yes," I assured her, turning to walk back in the direction we had just come from.

She clung tighter to me. "He's my fuckin friend…" she mumbled.

"I know, baby," I said softly, then turned my trailing fingers into massaging ones.

"And I gave that bitch a black eye b'cuz she gave me a bruised jaw," she informed me.

I nodded in understanding. "I know, sweetheart, I just don't like you fighting. It makes me nervous, " I told her as I buried my face in her hair, nuzzling her neck.

"But I like it."

I tightened my hold on her small form and sighed. "I know," I muttered despondently.

It was silent then until she yawned a few minutes later.

"Edward…"

"Yes?"

"I'm tired," she mumbled sleepily.

"I know."

"I don't _like_ it."

"I know."

"I love you."

I kissed her neck, her bruised jaw, then her cheek. "I love you too."

"Edward?"

I smiled. "Yes, angel?" I whispered softly in her ear.

"My binky?"

I nodded and walked over to the closet. I used my free hand to reach for the small package and brought it in between our meshed bodies. I quickly walked over to the rocking recliner and gently sat my little girl down on it, then held up the package for her viewing pleasure.

"Which one, baby girl?" I asked.

"Yellow with pretty stars, Edward," she muttered decisively with a little nod, rocking in the chair a little.

"Excellent choice," I agreed and smiled down at her.

She flashed me an adorable smile in return as small giggles leaked through her lips.

I held the pastel-yellow pacifier out to her in offering. She grabbed it and stuffed it in her mouth with a quickness, the smile remaining on her face. When I walked back over to the closet to put the package away, she asked, "Edward?"

"Yes baby?" I responded, turning around to face her.

"My princess bell movie?" she asked with hopeful eyes.

I clasped my hands behind my back and squinted my eyes in thought as I walked over to the dvd shelf. "Hmm…Beauty and the Beast?" I asked, looking back in her direction. "Is that your Princess Belle?"

She nodded, the yellow plastic of her pacifier subtly moving against her lips. I turned back to the dvd shelf and removed that particular movie case from the large collection, then brought it over to the flat screen and dvd player. While I was loading up the movie for my little girl, she spoke again.

"Edward?"

"Yes, angel?"

She pulled the pacifier out of her mouth. "My panties…panties all gone," she mumbled with a blush.

_Shit._

"I'll get you a pair," I assured her as I quickly made my way over to the dresser.

After I grabbed a pair of cotton panties, I handed them to her and instructed her to go to the bathroom to slip them on. While she was in the bathroom, I dimmed the lights and hit PLAY on the remote, then sat down in the extra large rocking recliner. She came out of the bathroom a few seconds later, binky still firmly attached to her mouth.

"Do you wanna cuddle with me in the new chair?" I asked invitingly.

She smiled shyly at me, blushing and twirling the fabric of that pretty blue nightgown with her small right hand. She swayed from side to side for a few seconds before she eventually nodded.

I smiled and held my arms out for her, "Okay, c'mere baby girl…"

She stepped closer to me and I wrapped my hands around her thin waist, then brought her over to sit on my lap. She giggled and snuggled into my side, nuzzling her warm face into the side of my neck. I wrapped my arms around her and held her close while the movie started.

About ten minutes later, Isabella wanted to switch positions, so I loosened my hold on her while she got comfortable. She ended up laying on her back across my lap, her head resting on one arm of the chair, her legs dangling off the side of the other.

"Rock-a-bye-baby, Edward…" she mumbled around her pacifier.

I looked down at her with a smirk. "You want me to rock you, baby love?" I asked softly while I started the slow, smooth rocking motion of the recliner.

She smiled and nodded, looking up at me. "Mm-hmmm…"

I lightly placed my hand on her belly, keeping her in place, and continued to rock her. She turned her attention back to the movie, but I kept my eyes on my little angel. She was so small…so petite. I spread my palm out and splayed all my fingers, only to find that it covered most of the width across her belly, where my hand was. I kept my palm there, and used my other hand to gently play with her hair, trying to lull her to sleep. I knew she was exhausted, but she was fighting it because she missed me. She had barely seen me all day. Her little hand was fisted tightly to the material of my cotton shirt, keeping me close to her.

"Edward?" she turned her head back to look up at me.

"Hmm?"

She moved the pacifier over to the corner of her mouth and held onto the rubber nipple with her teeth while she spoke. "Marie saw a movie today, in a big dark room, and it was good. I dunno if it had any ucky R's on it, though…"

I nodded. "What was it called, angel?"

"Chanceformers…" she mumbled.

"Transformers?" I clarified.

She nodded. "Mm-hmm."

"Did you like it?"

"Yah-huh, the big robots are funny, but scary," she told me with slightly wide eyes.

I nodded and hummed in agreement.

"She was with a girl, but I didn't like her. I don't know her."

"You don't like people that you don't know, sweetheart?" I asked curiously.

"Strangers are bad, Edward. They will hurt you," she informed me matter-of-factly in a light tone.

"That's right, angel," I confirmed. "Strangers _are_ bad, but that girl wasn't a stranger. Her name is Angela and she is Bella and Marie's friend."

Isabella slightly glared at me then. "Bella doesn't _need_ any friends. _I'm_ her friend," she stated with finality.

_Woah…possessive little thing._

"You are…" I muttered quietly in agreement.

She softened her gaze then and nodded. "Edward?"

"What baby?"

"Hummm the pretty song to me?" she asked sweetly, then moved the pacifier back to the front of her mouth.

I nodded and softly hummed along with the current song playing on the Disney movie. Isabella smiled up at me the whole time, her eyelids becoming heavy and her features becoming more relaxed. I kept my playing fingers in her silky hair and I never stopped the rocking motion. When the song was over, I stopped humming and Isabella's eyes popped right back open.

_Damn it._

"Shhh…" I tried shushing her.

She furrowed her brow at me, then turned her attention back to the movie, her death grip on my shirt never relaxing. I slightly turned the TV's volume down.

"Edward?" she mumbled around her pacifier.

I caressed her forehead, smoothing her bangs back and combed my fingers through her long locks. "What is it baby?" I asked in a quiet voice.

She hooked her thin finger around the pacifier handle then, and slipped it out from in between her pink puckered lips. She kept her voice soft and quiet when she spoke. "That girl hit me…" she told me, touching her cheek.

_And I will hit her._

I nodded. "Tell me what happened."

"She was fightin with Marie, and when she hit us on the cheek, I grabbed her hair and yanked her down with me b'cuz we fell on the floor. I got off the floor and squatted down, like Daddy taught me, and then I used fisted-fulls of her hair to bang her forehead into my knee lotts'a times," she told me, pointing to her own forehead and bringing her knee up to gently palm her bare kneecap.

I nodded. "Mm-hmmm…"

"Mm-hmmm, and then she was screamin and it was hurtin my ears. I wanted her to shut the fuck up, so I punched her in the mouth lotts'a times," she told me with a small nod, before she added, "Because Edward, she hurt _my_ mouth," she told me with a pout and put a small index finger to the small cut on her lip.

"I know, baby," I said softly while I gently cupped her cheek and lightly skimmed the pad of my thumb below her left eye.

"She in trouble?" she asked then.

I nodded. "Yes."

"What you gonna do?" Isabella hedged curiously.

_Kill her._

"Kill her," I blurted out before I could stop myself.

Isabella smiled brightly up at me and giggled. "Kay," she said, then lightly kicked her feet out and stuck her star-clad yellow pacifier back in her mouth.

"Okay…" I whispered when she turned her attention back to the juvenile movie on the flat screen.

I never stopped gently combing my fingers through her hair, and I never stopped slowly rocking her on my lap, and when the next song on the movie played, I softly hummed along with that, as well.

I slowed all of my movements as Isabella's breathing became more relaxed...deeper, somehow. When her heart slowed it's pace, I knew that I had successfully lulled my violent little angel to sleep.

I sighed, and closed my eyes, relaxing back into the chair as my baby lay curled around me on my lap...peaceful and still. I caressed her bruised cheek and suppressed a growl.

_Well, today fucking sucked._


	45. Doctor Edward

A/N:

Okay, first of all, I would like to thank my fuckawesome friend, Karen, for helping me figure out a few pointers on this chapter. Thanks, doll ~ You're the best :)

Alright people, this chapter deals with a yucky topic, but it had to happen. It HAD to, so just trust me and go along with it. Besides, I know you guys like it rough & dirty *haha* If you didn't, then you would have stopped reading this after the first therapy session. Okay? Okay! So don't puss out on me now. Soldier on through this chapter, sweets! I know you can do it. I believe in you ;)

Kay, well...back to story time, kids!

~ENJOY~

* * *

EPOV

I had been sitting here, rocking my angel for three hours now. Three long hours. Every time I would try to stop, so that I could carry her to the bed and tuck her in, she would become restless and start squirming around, causing that pretty blue nightgown to ride up her thighs. The material was gathered up around her tiny, but prominent hipbones now. I made sure to keep my hand on her belly, preventing it from rising any further. Anyway, when her squirming started, I would simply shush her, and start up the slow rocking motion again. She would calm right back down and be lulled back into a deep sleep. Again.

I was becoming slightly frustrated because I'd really rather she be laying on the bed, but apart of me…the sensitive and nurturing part of me, loved that she loved that I loved to rock her. If that makes any sense. I couldn't help but love it. She was adorable in her unconscious insistence that I rock her.

_Hmm…maybe I **am** getting better at this parenting crap._

I was drawn out of my thoughts by the sounds of her whimpering. I looked down to see her thin brow furrow, and her little bottom lip jut out into a pout as another slight whimper escaped her. I cupped her bruised cheek and ran my thumb along her slightly swollen bottom lip. When she rolled to her side and curled herself into me, I glanced at the clock to see that it was just after 1am.

"Shhh…" I tried shushing her and took to lightly rubbing her back.

"Owwie…" she whimpered and rolled so that she was laying on her back again. I let my hand trail on to her side and eventually land on her belly with the movement.

Her eyelids fluttered open and she stared up at me with bleary eyes. I furrowed my brow in concern and cupped her cheek again, lightly running the pad of my thumb under her left eye. She sniffled.

"Baby girl, what's wrong?" I asked softly in a whisper.

I watched, confused, as she slowly raised her knees, and placed her feet on the arm of the chair. She whimpered again as her right hand drifted down to cup her sex through her white cotton panties.

She gasped, "Owwie…" then began to cry.

_What the hell?_

I glanced at her face, only to see that tears had begun streaming out the corners of her closed eyes. I gently gripped her wrist and pulled her hand away from that…area. I quickly kissed her palm, then placed it on her belly.

"C'mere baby," I suggested softly, to which she opened her eyes and stared up at me as she continued to weakly cry.

I hooked my hands under her shoulders that lay on my thigh, and lifted her to my chest, standing when I did. She clung to me and buried her face in my neck.

"Ed-waaard, my owwie…hurts," she told me through her cries.

"What hurts, angel?" I asked softly in concern as I began the usual pacing. I lightly trailed my fingertips along her spine, gently coaxing an answer out of her.

"My cuntie, Ed-waaard," she hiccupped as the first sob wracked her small body.

My eyes widened as I slightly pulled her back so that I could look at her. "Why?" I asked, perplexed, my voice no longer a whisper.

"D-dunno…" she told me with a little shake of her head.

"Oh, sweetheart…" I sighed and placed a cool kiss to her forehead, hugging her back to my chest. She sniffled and tightened her grip on my neck.

I turned to walk back in the direction that we'd come from, and tried to think of a reason why my Bella's…pussy would hurt. And if it even _really_ hurt. Was it all in Isabella's head? Did she just have a bad dream? I gasped and let out an involuntary growl as I suddenly remembered that Marie had been to La Push for three whole hours yesterday.

_What the fuck happened?_

I gritted my teeth and asked with great hesitance, "Did something happen? Someone hurt you?" My entire body stiffened as I awaited her answer.

She subtly shook her head again, pressing her wet cheek to mine. "No," she mumbled through her cries.

I let out a relieved sigh, but then went right back to being confused again. Why would she be hurting down there? After a minute, my mind strayed to a few medical possibilities. I knew that I would have to ask more questions, so I let myself go into doctor mode, because I would not permit Carlisle to be involved in this. Even if he is better equipped to handle medically-related things, he most certainly would _not_ be taking a look at her, and I knew that he would want to. Especially if an exam was involved. Alright well, I've got four medical degrees. I can be Doctor Edward for the night.

I took a few calming breaths, pulling in my angel's heavenly scent, and sat down on the edge of the bed, keeping my mate straddled in my lap. I flicked the lamp on and Isabella hid her bleary eyes from the new light by pressing her face into the side of my neck.

Once I coaxed her head off my shoulder, I gently pressed my lips to her smooth forehead and caressed my cool fingers through her long hair, and down her back, willing her to calm down. With every exhale, she breathed in my sweet venom-tainted breath, and with every inhale, I breathed in her sweet aroma.

When her cries had sufficiently quieted down, and she was breathing somewhat normally again, I gazed into her tired eyes and smiled reassuringly at her.

_I'll take care of you, baby girl._

She blinked once and reached her little hand down in between our bodies to cup her sex through her panties again. I watched the movement with great concern. She whimpered when her hand made contact and I shushed her, kissing that runny little nose. I didn't want her to start crying again.

I reached for the tissue box that was left on the bed after Marie's punishment and plucked a single tissue from the box. I made quick work of gently wiping all the salty tears away and kissed both of her rosy cheeks when I was through. I folded the thin paper material in half and held it up to her adorable button nose, instructing in a soft voice for her to, "blow". She did, and when I was satisfied that all the wet mess was gone, I perfected my bedside manner voice.

"When did it start hurting, sweetheart?"

_See? Carlisle's not the only one with skills._

She stuck her thumb in her mouth. "Bedtime," she mumbled in a tired voice that cracked.

I nodded and noticed that both of her hands were in places they shouldn't be at the moment, but chose to ignore it for the time being. I had to concentrate on figuring out how to ask her questions that I knew were going to make her uncomfortable. I resolved to stay professional, and keep up my awesome bedside manner voice.

"How does it hurt, angel?"

She furrowed her brow at me in confusion and sniffled, but otherwise remained silent.

_Okaaay, let's start with bathroom etiquette._

"Okay, does it hurt to potty?" I clarified quietly with slightly squinted eyes.

She shook her head. "Mm-mm. it don't hurt to pee, Edward," she mumbled around her thumb.

I nodded. "Mm-hmm, and do you wipe when you're done, angel?"

She nodded. "Wipe all clean, Edward," she mumbled her assurance.

I sighed, "Good."

_Well, damn._

I was hoping that it would just be a simple case of slight irritation from her not wiping properly, and there being a bit of urine left on her sensitive skin. I mean, she _is_ five. It was a very plausible possibility. Oh well. Next round of questions…

I hesitated before I asked quietly, "Isabella, have you been touching yourself?"

She gazed at me curiously. "Huh?"

I blinked. "Um…like you are now, angel," I told her with a pointed look to where her right hand was at the moment.

She took her thumb out of her mouth and traced the wet tip along her bottom lip for a few seconds, seeming to think about her answer. She sighed before she asked, "Play with my cuntie?"

I swallowed some venom and nodded. "Mm-hmm," I hummed in agreement.

She shook her head. "I do it for Daddy, but he's not here…"

I had a very hard time suppressing a growl at her reply. I clenched my jaw and reminded myself, once again, to stay fucking professional. Something was wrong with my mate. I needed to find out what it was while remaining calm for her. Losing it now would only scare her and make matters worse. I sighed and thought of another possibility.

"Okay, baby love…when you're in your bubbles, do you wash up really good? Do you wash all over? Everywhere?"

She nodded and sniffled, getting upset again. "Edwaaard, it hurts," she whined with a furrowed brow.

I kissed away the little pucker between her thin eyebrows and murmured, "I know, angel…I'm trying to figure out why."

She nodded and stuck her thumb back in her mouth.

Coming to the conclusion that the cause for her discomfort was _not_ bad hygiene, I sighed and stood from the bed, keeping her in my arms. I turned around and gently laid her down on the mattress, so that she was comfortably placed in the center of the gold comforter.

She popped her thumb out of her mouth and gazed up at me with tired chocolate eyes. "Edwaaard, I want my pretty stars…my biiinky…" she told me with a whine.

I nodded and walked over to the desk, retrieving the yellow pacifier. I strolled back over to where my little girl lay and bent over the side of the bed, leaning down so that my face was hovering over hers. I swept some hair out of her eyes and slipped the pacifier between her pink puckered lips. I stared into her eyes, hoping that she trusted me enough to be okay with this next part.

"Angel love…?" I said softly.

"Hm?" she stared back with watery eyes.

I kissed her temple. "I'm going to look and see what's wrong now, ok? I have to take your panties off," I informed her, softly fingering the slight curl of her bangs.

She nodded and I gave her a small smile, grateful for her trust in me.

"It won't hurt, I promise," I assured her softly.

She nodded, the yellow plastic of her pacifier slightly moving against her lips now.

I kissed her smooth forehead and hummed against it's warmth. "Hmm…Fuzzy bear is worried about you, sweetie. Do you want to cuddle him while I'm doing that?" I asked, trying to provide her with a distraction from what I was about to do.

She nodded and mumbled, "Want Fuzzzzzy…" around her pacifier.

"Okay, love."

I stood from the bed and retrieved her stuffed bear from the small plastic basinet on the floor where it lay next to her baby doll. I walked back to the side of the bed and handed her the toy. She took it from me and hugged it to her chest. I watched for a few seconds, making sure her attention stayed on the brown bear, before I went over to the foot of the bed.

Her knees were angled up and her feet were planted on the mattress. I gently grabbed her ankles and pulled them toward me, so that her legs would lay straight. I kept my eyes on her the whole time. She was lightly running her small fingertips across the top of the bear's head.

I silently asked Jasper to reign in _every single trace_ of lust that might occur once I got her panties off. I needed to remain serious and professional so that I could figure out what was wrong. I couldn't let my dick get in the way of that. He assured me through his thoughts that he would.

I softly skimmed my fingers along her hipbones before hooking an index finger into her panties on each side. Isabella slightly stiffened and moved the bear off her chest and lay him at her side, placing his head in the crook of her shoulder, then looked down her belly at me.

I smiled reassuringly at her.

She stared, the plastic on her pacifier never stopping it's subtle movement against her lips.

I sighed. Looks like the toy is not going to provide a distraction after all.

_Useless bear._

"Okay princess, I'm going to take your panties off now," I informed her, still keeping my soft bedside manner voice in place.

She nodded silently, her fingers pinching the tip of her bear's ear.

I looked away from her critical stare to focus on my task then. I lightly patted the outside of her bare thigh. "Lift up your bottom for me, angel," I instructed.

She did, and I slowly slid the white panties down her smooth legs. Once I slipped her feet out of the little holes, I folded the tiny piece of fabric and gritted my teeth.

I sighed, "Isabella, I love you," and set the folded panties off to the side, before I allowed myself to look back at her.

"Love you too," she mumbled around her pacifier.

I nodded and looked down at her face, instead of the area in question.

Our eyes locked and I gave her my best reassuring smile before I asked, "Are you going to be a big girl for me?"

She nodded. "I'm a big girl, Edward," she told me.

"Good girl. Does Fuzzy bear not wanna play?" I asked, looking at the stuffed animal that was currently snuggled into her side.

She subtly shook her head. "He's tired…"

I nodded. "Ok then…"

With one last swallow of venom, I put my trust in my brother and looked down at my Bella's sweet, and smooth, and bare, and heavenly pussy…only to find that it didn't quite look the same as I remembered it. I furrowed brow, perplexed, as I critically scanned the slightly tinged pink skin of her bare folds. It definitely looked irritated.

_What…is going on?_

"Angel, I'm going to touch now," I informed her, never taking my eyes off of her irritated skin.

I didn't wait for her response. I gently placed two fingertips on the hot skin, one tip on each fold. She gasped and I immediately looked back up to her face.

"What is it, baby?" I asked in concern.

"Hurts," she whimpered.

I nodded. "I know, I need to find out why," I informed her softly.

She hooked her thin index finger into the pacifier's handle and slipped it out of her mouth. "Cold…cold fingers, Edwaaard," she whined.

I nodded apologetically. "Sorry, baby love, I'll try to hurry."

She sniffled. "Kay."

I turned my attention back to my task at hand and used my two fingertips to spread those little lips apart. I silently gasped when I saw a bit of a white discharge gathered at her small entrance.

An infection.

_But how?_

I quickly used my fingertip to wipe the discharge off her sensitive skin, knowing that it was _that_ substance that was causing her irritation and discomfort. I grabbed a tissue from the box by my side and wiped it off my finger. I nodded to myself, knowing what the problem most likely was now. She reached her right hand down to cover herself, now that my hand was no longer on her skin, but I caught her wrist before it could reach it's destination.

"Uh-uh," I muttered an admonishment.

She whined in protest. "Edwaaard…"

I ignored it. "Tell me how you hurt, angel. I need to know. Does it sting…itch-" I trailed off before she cut me off.

"Itchy-hott," she told me.

"So it burns and itches?"

She nodded. "Mm-hmmm…hurts," she told me, then stuck her pacifier back in her mouth.

I sighed. "Alice…Esme. I need one of you to run to the store, here in town, and pick up a box of Monistat. The one-day treatment. My Bella has a yeast infection," I whispered off to the side in vampire frequency.

_I'll go_ Alice thought at me.

"Thank you," I responded, still in our frequency.

I picked up Isabella's panties and showed them to her. "I'm going to put these back on you for now, baby girl, but they'll have to come back off again soon."

She nodded, tiredly rubbing her right eye with a tiny fist. I gently slid the cotton panties up her legs and instructed her to lift up her bottom for me again. She did, and when her panties were back on, I hooked my hands under her shoulders and shoulder blades, then picked her back up. I held her to my chest as she sniffled, slyly wiping her nose on the top of my shirt.

_Awesome._

I rolled my eyes and made a mental note to change my shirt as I walked us in the direction of the bathroom.

"We need to wash our hands," I told her.

She slowly nodded. "Wash 'em all clean…" she mumbled in agreement.

"Yes."

I turned the bathroom light on and set her down on her feet, then instructed her to wash her hands with the Dial foaming anti-bacterial soap. She smiled and pumped some white foam into her cupped palm. She mumbled, "Bubbles," around her pacifier as she rubbed her hands together. She kept rubbing them together, looking amused at the foamy soap in her hands.

I reached around her and turned the faucet on. "Alright, Isabella that's enough. Time to rinse, baby girl."

"Kay," she muttered, then stuck her hands under the running water.

She dried her hands while I quickly washed mine. While I was drying my hands, there was a soft knock on the door. Isabella gasped and looked towards the door, then hastily hid behind me. I shook my head and opened the door, knowing that Esme was on the other side.

I turned to look at my skittish little girl. "Esme is here to see you, baby."

She peeked out around my shoulder and looked at Esme curiously. When she saw the popsicle in Esme's hand, she smiled and walked around me to get to my mother.

"Here you go, dear," Esme said in offering, handing over the frozen treat.

"Thank you," Isabella said sweetly, then took her pacifier out of her mouth and brought the purple popsicle to her lips.

"I hope you feel better soon," Esme consoled.

Isabella nodded and walked around her to go to the bed. I watched her climb onto the bed and place her bear in her lap as Esme began a whispered conversation with me.

"You know, you could have asked me or Alice to look-" she started before I cut her off.

"No I couldn't. Neither of you have any medical training, and Isabella doesn't trust anyone. She barely trusts me, as it is. She views me as some sort of 'owner' and if I were to let anyone look at her in that way, then she'll see it as me letting someone hurt her. And Carlisle was completely out of the question because of his hair color. Besides, she is _mine_. I will take care of her."

Esme nodded. "I suppose you're right. Alice should be back shortly with what you asked for. If the child needs anything else, don't hesitate to let me know. I can bring up another popsicle as soon as she's through with that one…" Esme trailed off suggestively.

I watched as Isabella continued to alternate between her pacifier, and her popsicle being in her mouth with a smile on her face.

I shook my head and gave my mother a small smile. "No, thank you. One popsicle will be enough, I'm sure."

She nodded and left the room then. I flicked off the bathroom's light switch and walked back into the bedroom.

"Edward?"

"Yes, baby?"

She took the pacifier out of her mouth and placed it on the bed, the popsicle obviously winning out. I grabbed it and moved it onto the nightstand.

"My movie…my princess bell?" she asked brightly.

I nodded, observing how she seemed wide awake now. I didn't like that. It was 1:38 in the fucking morning. She would be going back to sleep as soon as I got that medicine in her.

"Beauty and the Beast again?" I asked, walking over to the flat screen.

"Yah-huh," she agreed, then stuck her purple tongue out and took another lick of her popsicle.

I powered the TV on and pressed PLAY on the dvd player, since the movie was still loaded onto it's menu screen from last night. The movie started and Isabella smiled.

I sat down on the bed next to her and leaned up against the headboard. I was not looking forward to this next part. When Alice returned, I would have to get her panties off again and do the actual 'treatment'. I groaned quietly in frustration and watched as Isabella cuddled her bear while she watched her juvenile movie. She kept squirming slightly and fidgeting in her spot, no doubt from the discomfort that accompanied the action of just sitting down. I reached out and lightly trailed my fingers along her back, trying to provide her with some small degree of comfort.

Now that I think about it, a yeast infection doesn't seem all that out of the blue. With the amount of stress that my Bella's body has been under lately…what, with therapy, getting over a cold, and finishing her menstrual cycle, plus her change in diet. It actually makes sense for something like this to happen. Just one crisis after another. Oh well. I can handle it. I can give her the treatment and make it all better for her. I had to.

Isabella whimpered just as she finished swallowing the last bite of her grape popsicle. I shushed her, but she began squirming around again. I smelt the salt of her tears just as she began to actively whine and pout.

I sighed. "Okay…"

I gripped my hands around her thin waist and picked her up, bringing her over to sit in my lap. I kissed the back of her head and lifted her nightgown a bit, so that her panty-clad bottom would be pressed into my cool skin. I kept my arm around her waist.

"Better?" I asked softly.

She sniffled and nodded, keeping her attention focused on the screen. I kept my mouth pressed to the back of her head and inhaled, smiling at her scent. I knew that the cold from my lap would help her overheated and irritated skin.

I heard Alice returning home then. She was out of her Porsche in a split-second, and soon, she was dashing up the steps to our bedroom. She knocked softly on our door, causing Isabella to jump slightly and turn her complete attention to the bedroom door, princess bell movie completely forgotten.

"Edward, don't let nobody hurt me," Isabella whispered, gripping my forearm that was currently around her waist with two small hands.

I furrowed my brow in concern and kissed the skin behind her ear. "No one is going to hurt you," I whispered in her ear.

She nodded so I called out, "Come in, Alice."

My sister poked her little head in through the crack of the door then, and held out the shopping bag to me, indicating that I needed to come and get it.

"Alice, will you _please_ just bring it in here and hand it to me?" I asked, a bit irritated, and nodding pointedly to the pouty little girl in my arms.

Alice quickly shook her head. "Gotta hunt," she squeaked out, before she lowered the bag and dropped it on the floor, then took off like a bat out of hell down the stairs.

I read her thoughts then, and was surprised to find that…_wow_, she was definitely feeling the burn. She hadn't hunted in quite a while, now that I think about it. Of course, I wouldn't have noticed something like that, as all my attention had been focused on my mate, and my mate alone, lately.

Isabella called out softly, "Bye Ally," a second later, but it was too late. Alice was already long gone.

I kissed my sweet girl's cheek and lifted her off my lap, placing her back on the bed, by my side. She turned her attention back to the movie while I stood from the bed and walked over to where Alice had dropped the bag. I opened it to find a small box of Monistat One. I breathed a sigh of relief, glad that she had listened and gotten the one day treatment. I wasn't sure if I could give my girl a treatment seven nights in a row.

_Thank you, Alice._

I went back to the bed and grabbed a pillow, then moved it down by the foot of the bed.

"Isabella, baby…come lay down over here. Put your head on the pillow, sweetheart," I instructed gently.

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

She crawled over to the foot of the bed and lay down sideways along the mattress. She rolled onto her stomach and burrowed her face into the soft pillow, making a soft humming noise.

"Baby, roll onto your back…" I suggested.

She rolled over and settled onto her back. "What you gonna do?" she asked curiously, looking up at me.

I held up the small box for her viewing pleasure. "It's time for the medicine, baby girl."

"But what you gonna do?"

I shrugged. "Give me a second to read the instructions, lovey. Watch you're movie for now," I suggested.

She nodded and popped her thumb into her mouth, turning her head sideways to look at the flat screen. I sighed at the sight of her thumb and reasoned that it was still bedtime, so I would allow it. I set the box down on the bed and went over to the dresser to change out of my shirt, remembering how she had tried to inconspicuously wipe her nose on me.

When I was done with that, I went into the bathroom and opened my Bella's feminine hygiene drawer. I found the package of wipes quickly and plucked out a few, knowing that I would need them for this task. I walked back to the bed and set the three wipes down on the gold comforter. After opening the packaged box, I emptied it's contents onto the bed.

There was a thin plastic applicator, a tiny white egg-looking thing, and a small tube of something. After inspecting the tube further, I found that it was a cream to be used externally and it would help my mate's skin feel better. I smiled at that, glad that my little angel would have instant relief.

I grabbed the small piece of paper and quickly read through the instructions. It said that after the tiny white egg thing was inserted, it was recommended that you wear a pad on your panties. I nodded to myself and rushed back into the bathroom, pulling open the same drawer. I grabbed the now-familiar pad and strolled back into the bedroom, over to the dresser.

Isabella remained quiet, her intent focus stayed on the Disney movie. She started humming along with the song currently playing as I opened my Bella's panty drawer and selected yet another pair of white cotton panties. I discreetly ripped the plastic covering off the small pad and went about the task of attaching it onto the inside of the fresh pair of panties. Once the pair of padded panties was prepared, I walked back over to the bed and set it down next to the three moist feminine wipes.

I sighed and reached down to lightly skim my fingertips along Isabella's hipbones again. Her eyes immediately shot over to mine, and once again, I smiled reassuringly at her.

"Do you want Fuzzy again, baby girl?"

She shook her head, "He's sleeepin'…" she mumbled around her thumb.

I nodded. "Okay, I'm going to take your panties off now, angel. When I'm done, you can put them back on," I assured her, keeping my voice soft.

She nodded.

I hooked my index fingers into the sides of her panties then. "Okay, lift up for me, love," I gently coaxed.

She did and I slowly slid the cotton panties off of her. I balled them up, and quickly walked over to the closet, then threw them in the dirty clothes hamper. Isabella's wary eyes watched my every move. I walked back over to her and caressed my fingers through the silky hair at the top of her head. I bent down to place a cool kiss on her forehead. When I pulled back, I stared intently into her worried eyes.

"It's going to be okay, sweetheart. I'll take care of you, I always will," I assured her.

"Kay…"

"Why don't you watch your movie and I'll be done before you know it. It'll just take a minute, okay?"

She nodded, thumb still in her mouth, so I placed a cool kiss to her little button nose, then went back to the right end of the bed, where my supplies were. I sighed and gritted my teeth at the pink tinged skin on her bare folds. It bothered me immensely that this particular area of her body was hurting her. The area that was especially _mine_. I would take care of it. Make it all better.

I picked up a wipe and showed it to Isabella. "I'm going to use this to wipe you all clean, baby love," I informed her.

She whimpered slightly, clearly getting nervous, but nodded, nonetheless.

"It's okay," I assured her once more, before taking my eyes away from her face and bringing the cool wipe to her skin. I gently wiped the outside out her folds and made sure to get in between them too, where, no doubt, more discharge had gathered.

"Sweetness, what's your princess bell doing?" I asked conversationally as I folded the wipe in half and ran it along her irritated skin once more.

She tore her eyes away from what I was doing and looked back at the screen, which is what I was aiming for. "She's talkin to her Daddyyy…" she told me, talking around her thumb.

I nodded. "Mm-hmm, and what are they talking about?" I prodded. I had to get her attention focused elsewhere.

"Bout stuff…" she trailed off, her eyes focusing back on my hands.

I internally rolled my eyes at her determination to watch me and sighed. I dropped the wipe into the small trash can by my side and grabbed the tiny tube of external cream. I held it up for her to see.

"Okay sweetheart, now this stuff…this stuff is awesome. It's going to make all of the hurt go away," I told her, gazing into her eyes.

She nodded. "S'itchy-hott, Edwaaard," she told me.

"I know, angel. This will cool it down and make all those bad itchies go away," I assured her.

She nodded, so I quickly twisted the cap off and squeezed a bit of the white substance onto my index finger. She watched, gazing curiously up at me, then flicked her chocolate eyes over to my finger. I sighed and let her look at it for a few seconds before I spoke.

"Alright baby…I'm going to touch now, okay?"

She nodded.

"I'm going to rub this in and it will make you feel better."

She nodded.

"Cold finger…" I trailed off as a reminder/warning before I let my finger make contact with her overheated, pink skin.

I gently and carefully rubbed the cream on the tip of my index finger all over her soft folds. After a few seconds, I dipped my finger in between them and rubbed the remaining cream up and down her bright pink slit.

I could actual _feel_ Jaspers dulling my lustful emotions. I clenched my jaw and looked back into my baby girl's eyes. Her brow was furrowed and her wary eyes had become guarded. I had to tread carefully and keep her talking.

"Does this hurt, angel? Does my finger hurt?"

She slowly shook her head.

"Good," I breathed out. "This is medicine, Isabella. I'm not going to hurt you…I love you," I assured her with conviction.

She sighed. "Kay…love you too," she replied softly.

I withdrew my finger then and used another wipe to get the creamy substance off my finger. I leaned over and placed both of my hand by her hips then. I had to give the cream a minute to start working.

"What's your princess bell doing now?" I asked conversationally.

She smiled around her thumb at me, then turned her head to the side, looking back at the flat screen. "She's waaaalkin…"

I nodded. "Mm-hmm, and where's she walking to?"

"To the kitchen b'cuz she's hungry and all the dishes are gonna sing to her…" she replied.

"Really? Why are they going to sing to her?"

"B'cuz the candle man likes to siiing…"

I noticed how all of her statements were ending with a slight whine. She was becoming tired again.

_Good._

I sighed. "Does it feel better, sweetheart? Are the itchies going away?"

She nodded and I straightened back up.

"Okay, now there's one more thing we have to do," I informed her.

She nodded, so I held up the applicator and let her watch me place the medicine egg on the tip of it.

"Wha's that?" she slurred around her thumb, staring up into my eyes.

I hesitated, but then reminded myself, for the hundredth fucking time tonight, that I was Doctor Edward right now. I needed to remain calm and professional and not show any weakness…or nervousness.

_Be a fucking man. Take care of your woman._

Right.

"It's the medicine," I told her.

She popped her thumb out of her mouth and looked confused for a second. "But you already done rubbed the medicine on my cuntie, Edwaaard…"

I nodded. "That was the medicine for the itchies, honey. This," I said, pointing to the applicator, "is the medicine for the infection."

She just simply nodded again.

I furrowed my brow in concern because I knew then that she didn't understand…she didn't know that this was going to have to go inside her.

I sighed and eyed her critically. "Are you going to be a big girl for me?"

She stuck her thumb back in her mouth and nodded. "I'm a big girl, Edward," she assured me, before turning her attention back to the movie and watching all the dishes break out into song and dance around the screen.

I ran my hand through my hair, suddenly worried. My eyes focused on her and they squinted as I felt extreme hesitance overcome me.

_Should I go slow? Should I go fast? Coax her through it, or get it done before she even realizes what's happening?_

_Edward do it while she's distracted and do it fast. In and out, son_ Carlisle's thoughts suddenly advised me.

I nodded, trusting my father's medical advice. Isabella began humming along with the song as I quickly looked back at the instructions on the bed and double-checked exactly what I was supposed to do.

Okay.

_Insert applicator, click medicine egg into place, then withdraw applicator._

Okay.

_Not a problem for Doctor Edward._

_In, click, out…I can do this._

I listened to Isabella's animated humming, as I lowered the hand holding the medicine applicator to her exposed pussy.

"Cold fingers," I murmured, before using two fingers to gently spread open her soft folds.

I kept my eyes focused on what I was doing, and quickly measured up the size of the tiny egg compared to the size of her small entrance. Once I had assured myself that, yes, of course it would fit, I clenched my jaw and quickly inserted the applicator.

Isabella's humming abruptly cut off, and her silence was immediately followed by her the sounds of her cries.

_In, click, out._

I quickly pushed my thumb against the base of the applicator, and clicked the medicine egg into place. I withdrew the applicator with ease and dropped it into the trash can by my feet. I was finished before Isabella could successfully finish one cry.

I grabbed the last wipe on the bed and wiped off my fingers as I gazed up at my poor baby's pained face. Her eyes were squeezed shut, and her jaw was clenched. Her chest moved slightly as she finished exhaling a hiccupping cry.

"Baby girl, I'm all done. It's over now," I assured her softly.

I leaned over her limp form and ran the back of my knuckles along her rosy cheek, willing her to open her eyes for me. "Isabella…" I whispered.

I noticed then that she wasn't breathing. She had finished letting out one single cry, and her chest had stopped moving. Her face was beginning to blush a bright red.

I widened my eyes in panic. "Isabella!" I gripped her small shoulders and slightly shook her. "Breathe, baby. Isabella, look at me," I demanded.

Her eyes shot open as she gasped in a breath and let it out in a loud scream.

_Aw, shit._

I bit my lip and stayed leaning over her, furrowing my brow in concern. She panted heavily, sobbing out her cries, as she stared up at me with hurt, watery eyes. She looked almost…betrayed?

I quickly shook that thought from my head and shushed her, running my cool palm over her wet cheeks, and being careful to keep my dirty fingers away from her eyes.

"It's over…" I assured her again.

Her only response was a loud hiccupping sob.

"Shhh…" I tried shushing her, but it didn't fucking work.

I stood straight up then, and began humming to her. I lightly hummed along with the rest of the song that was currently playing on the TV, while I grabbed the fresh pair of padded panties. I bent down and slipped her pedicured little feet into their designated holes and slowly slid the panties up her smooth legs. When I had the material gathered up at her knees, I gently grasped her hands in my own and pulled her off of the bed, so that she was standing in front of me. I kissed her forehead as she exhaled her sweet, warm breath onto my collarbone and chest with her cries.

"Pull up your panties, angel," I instructed, then placed a cool kiss on her runny little button nose.

She nodded, so I stepped back and watched as she bent down slightly and grabbed the waistband of her panties, pulling them the rest of the way up her legs, and eventually over her bottom. When she was done, she looked up at me with those watery chocolate eyes that always broke my heart. I hated it when she cried. She wasn't crying quite so hard anymore, but she was definitely still crying.

I gently took her hand in mine and led her into the bathroom. After a few steps, she latched onto my arm, so I turned slightly and hooked my hands under her shoulders, picking her up, and carried her the rest of the way to the bathroom. We entered the bathroom then, and I flicked the light switch on.

"I'm going to sit you down on the counter, love," I told her and was instantly reminded of just a few hours ago when I had brought Marie in here and said the same thing to her. She was crying also, but for different reasons.

She nodded and sniffled, tightening her arms around my neck. I sat her down, but she didn't want to loosen her hold just yet, so I stayed slightly bent over and caressed her back softly until she was ready to let me go. I continually shushed her and kissed her cheek, and three minutes later, she was finally reduced to the occasional whimper, and her tired arms loosened their hold on me. She let them fall down to her lap, and I kissed away four tears before stepping out from in between her legs.

I turned faucet on and quickly washed my hands, then wet a soft washcloth with the warm water. After I wrung it out, I gently ran it over her flushed skin, wiping away all of her salty tears.

I held a folded tissue to her nose then, and instructed, "Blow."

She did, her rosy cheeks slightly puffing out with her effort. I smiled softly at her.

_It's adorable every time she does that._

Now that she was quiet, I decided that I could voice my concerns.

"Did it hurt baby girl?" I asked softly in concern.

"Hm?" she muttered as she looked up at me with tired eyes.

"When I put the medicine in…"

She shrugged and looked away, blushing. I put my fingertip to her chin and brought her gaze back to mine.

"Tell me," I gently prodded.

"Edward?" her voice cracked.

"Yes, baby?"

"Daddy puts things in me too," she murmured sadly.

I gasped and shook my head. "Sweetheart, that was _medicine_. You have an infection, and that little white egg had to be put inside of you so that you wouldn't hurt anymore. Do you understand?"

She nodded slowly. I furrowed my brow, concerned.

"I would never hurt you," I promised in a strained whisper.

She nodded and held her arms out to me, wanting me to pick her up again. I did, and when I pressed my lips to her rosy cheek, I confessed, "I love you _so much_, Isabella. You're my special baby girl."

"Love you too," she mumbled in a tired voice.

I flicked the light off and walked back into the bedroom. "That…" I trailed off, then sighed. "Sweetness, I didn't do that to hurt you," I promised, before I quickly asked, "Did I hurt you?"

She shook her head 'no' then laid her head down in it's spot on my shoulder. I sat us down in the rocking recliner and held her close to me as I silently rocked her. It took her a minute, but her hesitant little fingers eventually began their usual descent into the soft hairs at the nape of my neck.

"Love you, Edward," she mumbled into my neck.

"I love you too, Isabella."

She nodded then pulled her chest away from mine, saying that she needed to change positions to finish watching her princess movie. I loosened my hold on her and watched as she ended up in the same position she had chosen before. When she was finally laying on her back on my lap, her head on one arm of the chair, her feet dangling off the side of the other, she smiled up at me. I smiled back and let my cool fingertips play with the long silky strands of her hair.

"Rock-a-bye-baby, Edward," she said shyly, then stuck her thumb in her mouth.

"Okay, baby love," I acquiesced softly, then placed my palm on her belly, and began the smooth back and forth motion of the recliner.

She flicked her chocolate eyes away from me and focused back on the flat screen. After eight minutes of rocking her and playing with her hair, her eyelids became heavy once again. I watched, completely entranced, as she would allow them to close, only to defiantly shoot them back open a split second later. After doing this six times, she furrowed her brow and whined, clearly frustrated.

"Shhh…" I shushed her, knowing that she was fighting sleep. I glanced at the clock, seeing that it was after 2:30 in the morning, and started humming. She needed to go to sleep.

Her eyes flicked over to mine. "Edward?" she mumbled around her thumb.

"Yes, baby?"

"S'no song on the mooovie…" she informed me matter-of-factly.

I chuckled lightly and nodded. "I know, angel, it's your lullaby," I told her, referring to the tune that I had been humming.

She quirked a small smile in the most adorable way. "I got a lullaby?" she asked curiously.

I nodded. "Yes, you do, love. And it's all your's. I made it special, just for you," I informed her with a small smile.

She popped her thumb out of her mouth and giggled. "Hummm the pretty song to me?" she asked sweetly.

So I did. I hummed non-stop for the next eleven minutes, and watched in amusement as Isabella continued her battle with sleep. I decided to up my game a little bit then, and gently smoothed some hair behind her ear, and let my hand on her belly become light, trailing fingertips along her side.

She finally succumbed to sleep two minutes later, as her thumb slipped out of her mouth and a whispered, "Mine," escaped her pretty pink lips.

I closed my eyes and relaxed back into this chair for the second time tonight, praying that she would stay asleep this time.

* * *

A/N:

Awww

Well, how do you think Edward handled it? Did it hurt Isabella's trust in him?

Leave me a review, doll.

Because they are pretty and so are you!

xoxo


	46. Secrets, Symbols & Sparkles

EPOV

"I want this one."

"Why that one?"

"B'cuz I want _this_ one," she insisted, shoving the book in my face.

"Angel, how about we watch a movie," I suggested, trying to find a way out of having to read the Night Huntress series to my five year old.

She shook her head. "Mm-mm," she muttered decisively.

I took the small book from her outstretched hand and sighed in defeat. "Okay baby love, c'mere…" I said invitingly, and patted my lap.

She rubbed her tired eyes with a tiny fist, and crawled up onto the bed to snuggle in my lap.

It was 6:05 in the morning, and she was awake again. She had woken up ten minutes ago, needing to use the bathroom, and when she was done, she told me that the 'itchy-hotts' were bothering her again. I nodded, and told her to lay down on the bed to get ready for some more medicine. She did as she was told, sucking that little thumb the whole time, while I applied some more external cream for her. We had just got done washing our hands when she told me that she wanted it to be story time. I agreed, but never knew that she would end up picking this book. I guess it's my own fault though. I should have thought to buy a few children's books while we were in Port Angeles last week, buying her toys.

I kissed her hair constantly and softly murmured the words on the page to her, keeping my sleepy girl in a comforting embrace. I was about four pages in, when there was a soft knock on the door.

I kissed Isabella's temple and paused my reading. "Come in," I called out quietly.

Carlisle entered the room then, being sure to give Isabella a reassuring smile as soon as he made his presence known. It was time for my Bella's anti-depressant, so he had the Prozac in his hand, as well as a sippy cup full of chocolate milk for my little girl. He and Esme had picked it up for her while they were away on their hunting trip. It was white with three Disney princesses decorating the cup, and it had a sparkly pink top. Isabella popped her thumb out of her mouth and gazed at the new cup curiously.

"My princesses…" she whispered softly. Longingly.

I smiled. "Carlisle and Esme got that for you, sweetheart. It's your very own princess cup," I stated, pointing out the obvious.

She turned to me with a soft giggle, then immediately looked back at her new favorite cup. "Edward, look-it, my princesses…" she told me, pointing a small finger to where Ariel, Jasmine, and Belle took different poses around the cup.

"Mm-hmm…" I hummed in agreement.

She tore her gaze away from the cup and shyly looked up to Carlisle with guarded eyes. He smiled down at her. She furrowed her thin brow at him.

"Isabella, it's time for you to take some medicine," he explained.

Isabella looked away and yawned.

"Can you show us that you're a big girl again?" Carlisle asked.

"Ummm…" she sighed then, seeming to think about her answer.

"Big girls get to have princess cups," he informed her in a persuading tone.

That seemed to make up her mind for her. She immediately nodded and held out her hand, eyeing the sippy-cup intently.

"Good girl," I whispered in her ear.

He placed the tiny pill in her upturned palm, and she popped it in her mouth, putting her palm to her lips, then eagerly leaned forward to reach for the cup in Carlisle's hand. He handed it over willingly, and after takes a few sips from the cup's special spout, she smiled up at him.

To any one else, it would have been a simple and small gesture, but for Isabella, it was a big step. She didn't smile at just anybody, and Carlisle knew that. His thoughts said that he was grateful for the progress that a simple cup seemed to inspire.

Not wanting to push his luck with my skittish and temperamental little girl, he gave Isabella one last parting smile, and left with a friendly, "Have a good morning, dear."

"Edward?"

"Hm?"

"I got chocolate milk in my pretty princess cup," she told me as the door to our bedroom softly clicked shut.

I kissed her hair again, hugging her to me, while she tipped the cup back for another drink. She was so soft and warm, especially first thing in the morning, when she's fresh out the blankets.

"I know it, baby."

"Your Mommy and Daddy got it for me, huh?" she asked, lightly running her small fingertips along the smooth, pink top, decorated with silver sparkles.

"Yes."

"Edward?"

I stuck my nose in her hair and inhaled her scent again. "Yeah?"

"I can be a big girl with a princess sippy-cup," she informed me with a little nod.

I smiled, remembering our conversation at the store the other day. She had reasoned that bottles and sippy-cups were for babies, and that thumbs and pacifiers were for big girls. Looks like she's had a slight change of heart. It was obvious that she was trying to convince herself of her big-girl status with that little statement, more than she was me.

I kissed her cheek, deciding to play along. "Yes you can, baby girl."

"Mm-hmm," she hummed brightly, then took another drink and snuggled back into my side. She held onto the cup with one hand, and popped her little thumb back in her mouth. "Story time, Edwaaard…" she requested with a slight whine.

She was still tired.

I nodded. "Okay, honey," I acquiesced, starting back up on page five. I lightly trailed my fingertips along her side, and kept my voice soft and quiet while I read to her.

With every word I spoke, my regret on reading this book to her grew more exponential. It was the first in one of my Bella's book series, and it was about a young girl who was a vampire hunter, but she was a half-breed hybrid mix, herself; her mother was a human, her father was a vampire. This girl inadvertently ends up in a very adult relationship with a vampire, despite her mother's wishes, and the pair of them proceed to hunt down the 'bad vampires'.

_How ironically inappropriate…_

"Edward?" she interrupted.

I sighed in relief, glad for the interruption. "Hmm?"

She gulped down another drink. "What' a vampire?" she asked, gazing at me curiously.

_Damn it._

I tensed as I scanned my brain on any plausible answer, not wanting to have this particular conversation with her right now. She didn't know that she was living with a coven of vampires yet, and I wasn't too sure how she'd take this information, so as of right now, I only wanted to placate, not explain.

"The people in this book…" I hedged.

"Marie says you too, Edward…" she mumbled tiredly.

I exhaled sharply, trying to stave off my sudden panic at her unexpected declaration. "What?" I muttered quickly.

_Damn it, Marie._

"She says you…you, too."

I looked to the ceiling and sighed in resignation then, not really seeing the point in lying to her now. I was planning on telling her eventually, anyway. She'd find out sooner or later, anyway.

_I'd rather it be later, not sooner._

I looked back at Isabella then, and kissed her forehead, holding her curious chocolate gaze with my evil gold one. I tightened my hold on her, irrationally afraid that she would get scared and want to run. I lightly blew my venom-tainted breath onto her face to take the edge off any upcoming anxiety that she might feel.

I squared my shoulders and nodded slowly, keeping the vital eye contact. "Mm-hmmm…" I hummed in agreement.

"How come?" she asked, bringing a tiny fist up and tiredly rubbing her right eye.

_Huh?_

"How come what, baby doll?"

"How come? But what am I?" she asked softly, perplexed.

I nodded. "You're human," I informed her.

"What's that?"

_Uhmm…_

I subtly shrugged. "What you are."

She huffed. "But how come I can't be like you?" she asked with a small whine.

I quirked a slight smile at her statement. Would all facets of my Bella long to be like me? An undead, bloodsucking monster?

_Apparently._

"Maybe one day, angel…maybe you will be," I placated her.

She nodded. "Kay."

I squinted my eyes at Isabella then, gazing at her curiously. "Do you know what that means, baby girl? Do you know what 'vampire' means?"

She slowly shook her head and caught her bottom lip with her teeth. "Nooo…is it b'cuz your blankie don't work, and you don't like peanut butter and jellies?" she asked then.

I chuckled softly at her statement and nodded. "Yes, baby…that's why I'm cold and I don't like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches."

She nodded. "Kay…but Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"_I_ like my peanut butter and jellies…" she mumbled.

I nodded. "I know, baby."

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

"Marie says…" she trailed off.

I stared at her expectantly, but she fell quiet then, staring at the collar of my shirt. After seven seconds, she furrowed her brow and looked back into my eyes.

"Hmm…Edward?"

"Hmm…?"

"Marie says you're like us," she said in a whisper.

Now it was my turn to furrow my brow. "What do you mean?"

"You can't grow up?" she asked in a small, uncertain voice.

My eyes widened a bit at that odd similarity, as I slowly shook my head. "No, baby…I can't," I confirmed.

She gave me a bright smile then, and giggled. "See, my Edward? We're gonna have fun with the lost boys b'cuz we're just like them, huh? Wanna play Never Never Land with me, Edward? You can be Peter Pan and I can be Tinker Bell."

I smiled softly at my little girl, loving her imagination and so relieved that she was reacting like this. Of course she would try to relate my odd qualities with one of her favorite fairytales. I considered taking her to our meadow to play this game and running with her on my back…she'd think we were flying.

_Perfect._

I leaned forward fractionally, just enough for the tips of our noses to touch. She giggled at the contact, and softly rubbed her nose against mine in a famous Eskimo kiss.

"Maybe we can play Never Never Land later, hmm? It's still story time, love," I pointed out gently.

She sighed, nodding, then took another drink and pointed back to the page. I kissed her cheek, then continued reading, starting on page nine now. She began to twirl strands of her hair and I only got two more pages in before she spoke again.

"Hey, Edward?"

I smiled. "Yes?"

"What's wrong with the goods?" Marie asked, gesturing down to her crotch.

I nodded. "You have an infection, sweetheart," I informed her.

"Bummer."

"Yes, bummer."

She sighed, then handed me Isabella's sippy-cup. I set it down on the nightstand and Marie reached for the TV remote. She turned the flat screen on, and changed the channel to VH1, obviously wanting to watch the early morning music videos, so I put the book down and held Marie to me while she hummed along with the songs. Every once in a while, she would tiredly rub her eyes, but she seemed determined to stay awake.

"Edwaaard…"

I furrowed my brow. "What is it baby?" I asked softly in her ear.

"It's _my_ story time," Isabella reminded me, taking the remote that lay on the bed, and turning the TV off.

"Okay, but maybe we can pick out another book? Hmm, angel?"

She shook her head and I sighed, deciding right then and there that I would pick up some more appropriate books the next time we went out.

Three sentences in, and she grabbed the remote, then turned the TV back on.

"It's _my_ music time…" Marie muttered under her breath.

I widened my eyes a bit at the abrupt change again, but just nodded, setting the book back down. I watched two more music videos with Marie, before Isabella took the remote with a whine, and shut the TV off.

"Nooo…storrry tiiime…" she insisted with a pout.

I subtly shook my head in disbelief at what seemed to be Isabella and Marie's current argument, then just picked the book back up and started where I had left off.

Isabella smiled at me, glad that she was getting her way, and stuck her thumb back in her mouth, always staying snuggled into my side. I managed to get through two paragraphs this time, before she shoved the hand holding the book away, and went for that remote again.

"Edward, what the fuck did I just tell you? It's my music video time, damn it, and that's just how it's gon' be," she told me, her voice dripping with finality and frustration.

I didn't respond, not really caring whether I read, or watched TV now, just as long as I was keeping my girls happy.

Marie leaned back into me, keeping the remote in her hand this time, and kissed my jaw, before fixing her gaze back onto the flat screen. I wrapped my arm around her midsection, keeping her held to me, while I listened to her soft, lilting hums. I had just finished kissing her forehead, when she began to cry.

"Edwaaard, Marie won't let me have my storrry tiiime," Isabella whined, clearly trying to 'tell on her'.

I shook my head at the ridiculousness of it all. "Baby girl, don't cry," I told her.

She sniffled. "B-but it's not faaair…" she insisted.

I squinted my eyes a bit, looking her over. "Hmm…I think you're still sleepy, pretty girl," I told her, observing her constant eye-rubbing and whiny tone.

She shook her head, her barely-there cries quieting down now. "Mm-mm, I'm not," she lied.

I softly patted the outside of her bare thigh a few times. "Mm-mm baby girl, don't lie to me," I murmured in her ear, but even I could hear the undercurrent of a warning in my tone.

Her only response was another sniffle as she lay her head down on my shoulder and pointed to the book that lay forgotten on the gold comforter. I sighed and picked it back up, starting where I had left off, once again. I hadn't gotten four words in, before she shoved herself off my chest and yanked the book out of my hand.

"No," Marie scolded.

I raised my eyebrows at her and reached for the book. "Marie, stop it."

"No. I'm not a fuckin _baby_, Edward. I don't need you to read to me. I don't want a story time, goddamn it."

I nodded in understanding and set the book aside. "I know. The story book is for Isabella. _She_ wants it. But you can turn your music back on now, sweetheart."

She nodded with a muttered, "Kay," then pressed the power button on the remote again, and settled back against my chest to continue with her 'music video time'.

After a minute, she slid out of my lap and opened the nightstand drawer to retrieve my Bella's Nintendo DS and power that on, as well. She turned the TV's volume up, then went and settled into the rocking recliner in the corner of the room, choosing to sit by herself for now.

I watched as she played MarioKart and sang along to her music videos while rocking the chair back and forth enthusiastically. Sometimes, she would pause her singing to curse the tiny video game before her, but she would always return back to her songs and sing along with perfection, completely in tune, and word for word.

I started making the bed, and wondered if my little girl would come back around to protest the music anytime soon. I grabbed the book off the nightstand and tucked it away, back in it's spot on my Bella's bookshelf, hoping that this particular 'story time' was over. I don't want to read those books to my baby anymore. I'll just have to pick up some fairytales and Dr. Seuss, or something, for her today.

Marie seemed pretty occupied with her music and video game, so I went next door to the weight room and started wiping down the new work-out machines. I made sure all the machines were put on the lowest resistance settings, and organized the little barbell weights in their designated cubby-hole shelves. I was just getting ready to put the boxing gloves away, when I heard Alice's thoughts.

_Edward, get her off of there_ Alice thought to me.

I furrowed my brow and went back to my bedroom. Marie was standing on the extra-large recliner now, using the balls of her feet to control the still-rocking motion, and shaking her little hips from side to side, dancing to the music coming from the TV. Her face was turned down to the Nintendo toy in her hand, as she was completely focused on it.

"Marie, sit down."

"No," she muttered distractedly.

"You're going to fall."

"No I'm not," she mumbled without looking up at me.

I walked over to her, and wrapped both of my hands around her thin waist, then quickly lifted her off the recliner and set her down on her feet in front of me. She noticed the sudden movement, and tore her gaze away from her toy to scowl up at me.

I simply shrugged and said, "Don't tell me no."

When she glared at me, I raised my eyebrows at her and took my Bella's Nintendo DS out of her hand, then shut it closed with a small _snap_.

Marie gasped, "Hey!" then stomped her foot.

I rolled my eyes. "Marie, it's really too early for tantrums, don't you think?" I asked casually.

She crossed her arms over her chest. "But I was playing with that! I was winning, and my fuckawesome Peach was so badass, you should'a seen-"

I shook my head. "Not anymore, she's not."

She made that familiar whining noise in the back of her throat then, reminding me very much of Isabella. I ignored it, though.

"It's time for breakfast, love," I informed her, then placed a gentle, cool kiss to her pursed, warm lips.

She kept her lips tight and sighed through her little button nose, then muttered a defeated, "Fine," before stomping off down the stairs.

I subtly shook my head at her retreating form, then put my Bella's DS back in the nightstand drawer. I shut the TV off, then grabbed Isabella's new sippy-cup and took it down to the kitchen sink.

After I joined my girl in the dining room, I noted that we both still needed to get dressed. Marie sat down at the table, barely dressed in that little blue night gown, and I still remained in a black wife beater and pajama pants.

Marie's eyes danced excitedly around the plate of food that Esme had placed in front of her, and her voice lilted with her indecision. "Yummy sweet strawberrieees…fuckawesome French toast…yummy sweet strawberrieees….mmm, fuckawesome French toast…and yummy sweet straw-"

"Marie, sweetheart, just pick one and eat it," I told her.

She nodded and grabbed her fork, cutting into a slice of French toast. "I'm gonna eat you..." she told it.

I rolled my eyes and fought a smile as she giggled out, "Get in'ma belly!" in an authentic Scottish accent.

She stuffed a big piece of syrupy bread into her small mouth then. I saw a little trickle of maple syrup trailing down her lower lip when she smiled over at me. She continued to chew, her mouth completely overstuffed, and her delicate jaw line constantly moving with her effort. When she deliberately crossed her eyes at me and started to subtly bounce in place on her seat, I lost my battle with that smile and let my grin break free.

"You're so cute," I commented before I could stop myself.

She nodded, and when she finally swallowed, she remarked cheekily with a smile, "It's whyyy ya love me."

I chuckled softly. "Yes. That and many other things…" I trailed off.

Marie's pink tongue peeked out as she licked the syrup from her bottom lip. "Mom makes yummy food that's always mmm-mmm good, Edward. I fuckin love it," she told me, then popped a strawberry half in her mouth.

I nodded. "I'm glad you like it, sweetheart."

She swallowed. "I do!" she exclaimed brightly, then took another bite of her French toast.

I sighed contentedly and watched my mate consume the high calorie food. With every bite of butter-covered-syrup-soaked bread that she swallowed, my anxiety at her underweight issue lessened a little more.

Marie swallowed. "Edward, my Bell's upset. Why?" she asked, suddenly switching the relaxed atmosphere in the room to a slightly tense and somber one. She wasn't smiling anymore as she put her fork down and chewed another bite of her food.

I furrowed my brow. "I don't know, sweetheart…" I hedged quietly.

I _did_ know, but I wasn't sure what the protocol was for discussing my Bella's breakdown with her alternates, especially since they weren't aware of said breakdown, in the first place.

"Edward?"

"What baby?"

"Wanna play outside," Isabella informed me.

I nodded. "You can after breakfast, and after you get dressed, sweetheart."

"What am I gonna get dressed in today?" she asked, stabbing a piece of strawberry with her fork and bringing it to her mouth.

I sighed. "Well pretty girl, it's really nice outside today, so how about some shorts instead of jeans?" I suggested.

She nodded, smiling at the sweetness of her fruit. "Edward?"

"Yes?"

"I can dress my baby dolly after breakfast too, huh…"

"Yes."

"Edward?"

"Yeah?"

"I can have my princess cup too, huh…"

"Maybe later, baby. It's in the sink right now…needs to be washed."

"At bedtime?"

"Sure."

She scooted a piece of French toast around her plate with her fork. "Edward?"

"Hmm?"

Her chocolate eyes flicked away from her plate, and up to mine. "Story time over?"

I nodded slowly. "Yes it is, baby."

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

"I'm full."

She set the fork down next to her plate and I immediately scanned what food was left, not being able to trust Isabella at all when she says that she's 'full'. After I saw that only two pieces of strawberry and one bite of French toast was left, I relented and nodded at her.

"Okay baby, breakfast can be over. Go on upstairs…I'll be up in a minute."

Isabella nodded and passed both of my parents on her way up the stairs, while I took her breakfast dishes to the sink. Esme stayed in the front room, but Carlisle came to join me in the kitchen.

"Hey…depending on what happens today, I might need you to keep an eye on Isabella for me later on," I informed Carlisle.

"Oh?"

I nodded. "Yeah…I need to go out and get some children's books today because she seems to want a 'story time' now, but we don't have any suitable books for a five year old. This morning, I had to read one of Bella's adult books to her, and I do _not_ want to be put in that situation again. The romance and violence in those books are not appropriate for my little girl. At all," I told him.

He nodded. "And you don't want her to come with you?"

I subtly shook my head. "I…I don't want to make it an all-day trip. I just want to grab a few books and go, and I know that if she comes along, then she'll be indecisive and we'll end up staying there for at least a few hours," I offered lamely.

He nodded again, but I could hear the skepticism in his thoughts.

I rolled my eyes and growled in frustration. "Of course I don't _want_ to leave her here, but you guys aren't going to get off my back until I can comfortably leave her at the house every once in a while. I just…look, I'm going to go out on a limb here, and trust you with my mate again. I know it's important to my Bella that I let you all help out, so I'm putting forth all these efforts to make _her_ happy, and her alone."

"Right…"

"Just…can you promise me something?"

"Of course."

"Don't let her leave, and don't confine her," I pleaded.

He nodded.

"I…I won't be able to leave her here again if I come home to what I've had to deal with the last two times I tried this. This is _it_. Three strikes, and you're out. Got it?"

He nodded, "Son, you shouldn't worry so much…we care about her too-"

"Not as much as I do," I abruptly cut him off with a tone of finality.

I left him standing there in the kitchen, and went up the steps to my bedroom, eager to be in my mate's presence again. I focused on her constant heartbeat, and when I reached the third story landing, I saw that Isabella was standing in the entrance to our bedroom, staring at me with worried chocolate eyes. I furrowed my brow in concern and noticed how she was lightly bouncing from one foot to the other, making a soft whimpering noise.

I walked up to her, stopping just inches away. "What is it, baby?" I asked softly.

"Gotta pottyyy…" she told me with a whine.

I nodded. "Go potty."

"Kay," her voice rushed out, as she turned and ran to our bathroom, slamming the door shut behind her.

I sighed and made my way over to the closet, wondering how to broach _that_ particular subject with her. She didn't need my permission to use the bathroom…ever.

I changed my clothes while she was in there, and had begun picking her outfit out when I heard the faucet turn on so that she could wash her hands. After I picked out some jean shorts and a little white camisole top, I laid them on top of the dresser and opened the panty drawer, grabbing a pair of pink cotton ones.

Isabella came out of the bathroom just as I was putting a small panty liner on the pink pair of panties. I didn't think she needed to wear a pad anymore today, so I was using the thin panty liner that I had set aside last night for today's use.

"Edward, hold me…" Isabella requested in a shy voice from behind me.

I nodded and turned to pick her up. I held her against my chest, smiling at one of my favorite hugs, then used my free hand to quickly grab the panties and external cream off the dresser.

I walked us over to the bed and gently laid her down in the middle of it. She whimpered when she figured out that I wasn't laying down with her. When I straightened back up, she reached for me and pouted.

"Shhh, my baby love…" I cooed to her, lightly trailing my fingertips along her bare knee, and silently asking my brother for his help on this matter again.

Jasper agreed and Isabella huffed.

"Edward, I wanna go play," she told me, sucking on her bottom lip.

"After some more medicine, and after you get dressed, baby girl."

She whined, but I ignored it, hooking my fingers into the sides of her panties instead. "Lift up for me, angel," I told her.

"Nooo…" she whined.

I unhooked one finger and lightly patted her bare thigh. "Lift up your bottom, Isabella," I said in a firmer tone.

She started to cry then, but lifted up, nonetheless.

I hesitated, furrowing my brow at her cries, but still slipped her panties down her smooth legs. I took the used pad off and walked over to the closet to throw the panties in the hamper. I dropped a cool kiss to Isabella's forehead as I passed by her on my way to the bathroom, needing to throw the pad away and grab a few feminine wipes.

When I was done in the bathroom and came back to the foot of the bed, Isabella was still crying. I sighed and set the wipes and small tube of external cream down, off to the side, then leaned over her, placing both my hands on either side of her small hips.

"Hey…baby girl, what's wrong?" I asked softly, worried that the trust was somehow broken now, and she was suddenly afraid of me, for some reason.

She stared up at my concerned face with watery chocolate eyes. She gasped in a breath, then said, "Wanna go plaaay…" in a shaky voice.

I raised my eyebrows at her incredulously.

_You have got to be fucking kidding me._

"Are you throwing a fit?"

She exhaled a shaky breath and clenched her eyes shut, crying some more and not bothering to answer me. I squinted my eyes at her, angry now that she had made me worry like that.

"I think you are…" I trailed off, cocking my head to the side.

She opened her eyes to gaze back up at my face.

I glared at her. "Do you want a spankin, Isabella?"

"Nooo…" she cried, shaking her head.

"Then, stop it," I firmly demanded.

She nodded and sucked on her bottom lip, swallowing back a sob and trying to comply with my demand. I watched as she calmed herself, and after a minute, she had successfully quieted down, so I softened my gaze and kissed her forehead.

"It's okay, baby…I'll be done in a second," I murmured softly against her skin.

She sniffled. "S'itchy-hott, Edward," she told me in a small voice that cracked.

I nodded and straightened back up. "I know angel, and that's why you need more medicine before you can go play outside," I told her.

She nodded, so I handed her a tissue and her Fuzzy bear, then picked up a wipe and wiped the sensitive skin of her bare folds. Her color was almost back to normal now, only faintly tinged a soft pink, as opposed to last night's brightly lit pink/almost red color. I threw the wipe away, then grabbed the soiled tissue that Isabella was holding out to me, and threw that away, as well. I picked up the tube of external cream then, and after placing some along my fingertip, I lowered my hand back down to her exposed sex.

"Cold finger," I reminded her, then carefully ran my finger up and down her little pink slit, trying to thoroughly rub the medicine in for her.

When I was done, I used the last feminine wipe to wipe off my finger, and gazed down into Isabella wary eyes. I grabbed her panties and showed them to her.

"Time for new panties, angel."

She softened her gaze and nodded. "They're pink like my pretty twinkle toes…" she told me, holding her foot up for me to see.

I caught her dainty ankle with my free hand and lightly tickled her heel with my cool fingers. Her laughter and giggles filled the space of our large bedroom. I smiled down at her and placed a quick kiss to her pedicured big toe, then gently laid her leg back down on the bed.

"Very pretty toes," I agreed lightly, as I began slipping her feet through the designated holes of her new panties.

She smiled brightly up at me. "Pretty _twinkle_ toes…" she emphasized.

I nodded. "Yes, _twinkle_ toes. My baby has very pretty _twinkle_ toes…" I softly sang to her as I continued slipping the tiny piece of fabric up her smooth legs.

She smiled as she lifted up her bottom for me one last time, then sat up, leaving her Fuzzy bear at her side and reaching for me.

I lifted her up and hugged her to my chest, then asked if she wanted to wash her hands with me. She shook her head because she had just got done washing hers, so I set her back down and told her to get dressed while I was in the bathroom.

I took my time washing my hands, wanting to allow my little girl some privacy to get dressed. I listened closely to the sound of soft fabric sliding over delicate skin with ease.

I noticed then, that Alice, Esme and Carlisle were outside in the backyard. Carlisle and Esme were sitting on the porch swing, and Alice was setting out Isabella's play-doh and sidewalk chalk. She also had some of her own art supplies from school out there…markers, little paints, and things of that nature.

I smiled, knowing that my little girl would enjoy herself and be very occupied when I decided to leave so that I could buy some books for her story times.

When the faint _swish_ noises of clothing stopped, I grabbed the hair brush off the counter and walked back into the bedroom.

"Sit down, baby," I told her, motioning to the rocking recliner.

She shook her head and stomped her foot. "But I wanna go play!"

_Seriously. It's too fucking early for tantrums._

I was getting fed up. Both Marie and Isabella had had their freebie this morning. One more step out of line from either of them, and they'd be taking a trip over my knee.

"Isabella, if you don't quit with that attitude, you're not going to be playing outside at all today, young lady," I warned.

She huffed, so I tried again. "I need to brush your hair, angel, and _then_ you can go play."

She nodded, with a muttered, "Kay," and skipped her way over to me, stopping when we were just inches apart, then turned her back to me.

I sighed, knowing that this was the best I could expect from her at the moment. She was so excited to get outside and play, that she just simply couldn't sit still right now.

I gently ran the brush through her hair, trying to work out the tangles that had occurred overnight, while Isabella hummed 'Ring Around the Rosy' and rocked up onto her tippy toes a dozen times. When all of her hair was thoroughly brushed and tangle-free, I told her that she could go play now, to which she nodded and grabbed my hand, dragging me down the stairs with her.

"Edward?"

I turned and lifted her in my arms. Her skipping was making me nervous.

"Hmm?"

She clung to me as I descended down the steps to the first floor. "We can jump on my jump-a-lene, and swing on my swing, and draw with my chalk, and ride Marie's bike, and squeeze my sparkly play-doh, and make muddy pies, and play with the ball, and climb up the trees, and run, huh?" she suggested in one long breath.

_Wow._

I nodded. "Yes."

She leaned away from my chest, keeping both her hands clasped behind my neck, and sagged back to smile brightly up at me.

I smiled back. "You're silly," I commented, to which she giggled.

I pressed my hand to the small of her back and brought her chest back to mine. She complied, hugging herself to me, and stayed that way as I walked the rest of the way down the steps.

When we reached the back door, I opened it, then set my vibrant little girl down on her bare feet in front of me on the patio. She turned away from me, and I watched closely as she ran across the green lawn, all the way over to the large trampoline. She placed both her hands on the side of it, then hopped, using her hands to push herself up and climb onto that death trap. When she crawled to the center and started jumping, I turned to face my family.

Jasper stepped through the back door and shut it behind him, then. He walked around my still form silently, and went to stand beside Alice.

"She knows what we are?" he inquired quietly.

I nodded. "Yes…I'm sure that you all heard the conversation this morning, so you know that she's completely fine with it. She finds it fascinating and she relates some of our traits to that Peter Pan movie. She wants to play a game called, 'Never Never Land' with me, and she's very happy that I'm just like her, in the sense that I can't grow up. It's what we can expect from a five year old," I concluded.

He nodded. "Makes sense…"

Carlisle and Esme remained quiet, having already heard the conversation between me and my little girl this morning.

Alice beamed up at me, glad that we didn't have to keep the secret from Isabella anymore, but before she could start with her excited squeaks and squeals, I began the very important discussion that I needed to have with my family.

I had to make them understand my position in this particular matter.

"I'm going to be leaving soon. Isabella is apparently interested in having a story time now, so I need some good children's books to accommodate her wishes. I will be gone for an _hour_, at the most. Please…please, take care of her. I know that you all heard the talk that I had with Carlisle this morning…" I hedged.

They nodded, so I continued. "Like I said, I cannot keep putting my trust in you, just to come home and see that my mate is frantic, or fucking missing. Yes, we are all allowed to make mistakes, but this is _not_ a trial and error situation. This is my mate we're talking about here, and there is no room for mistakes when it comes to her. So…there will be _no_ confining in an effort to discipline her, and she is _not_ allowed to leave. I don't care who calls, or what movie is showing."

I raised my eyebrows and looked to each of them to make sure I still had their attention before I carried on. "She is allowed to play on the trampoline, but if she gets within two feet of that blue padded material, then she needs to get off immediately and serve a five minute time-out in one of the lawn chairs out here. She is allowed to play on the swing, but both of her hands need to remain on the ropes while it's in motion. If she fails to comply, then there will be no more swinging, and I will deal with her when I get home. She can draw and run, she can play with the balls, and play with her play-doh…whatever, but she is _not_ allowed to ride Marie's bike. And if she climbs up one of the trees, then I want one of you up there with her. Is that clear?"

They all nodded, but before any of them could speak, I reiterated, "This is the _last_ time I'm going to do this. If I come home to chaos, I will not entrust my mate's welfare into your hands again. Bella will just have to understand that and fucking _deal_ with it, and the only times that I will leave her here with you, will be so that I can travel a few hours away to go hunt," I stated with finality.

"She'll be fine, dear," Esme assured me.

"Son, like I said before…you shouldn't worry so much. The turmoil from these last two times were based on misunderstandings and bad decisions. Nothing was purposefully done to hurt her…" Carlisle reasoned before a hyper pixie cut him off.

"Edward!" Alice exclaimed, exasperated. "Seriously, she'll be fine with _me_, because I'm her best friend," she stated with finality. "Look…" she trailed off, gesturing to the table, "I got all this neat stuff out for Isabella to play with, and maybe she'll be more comfortable with me if I share her interests, yeah? I can draw and color with her…"

I nodded, giving my sister a small smile. "She'll have fun with you, Alice."

Isabella would definitely love playing with all the art supplies Alice had set out, especially the sparkly stuff. I saw the sidewalk chalk bucket on the pavement by the basketball hoop and the six pack of neon colored sparkle play-doh sitting on the shaded metal table, just waiting to be played with.

"Don't worry, brother. I can ease her anxiety when you leave and persuade her to behave while your gone," Jasper informed me with a wink.

I smiled, feeling Jasper's talented calm wash over me. "Yeah, you're right Jazz…she'll be fine," I reasoned, basking in the glow of my newfound care-free attitude.

I turned to go in the direction of a bouncing Isabella then, but Carlisle stopped me before I could get too far.

He looked down at his wrist watch. "Be sure to hurry back, son. It's about ten o'clock now, so if you're back in an hour, then you can spend a few hours with her before her therapy session begins this afternoon. If Bella hasn't made an appearance by then, then I'm going to try a session with Isabella instead…or Marie; whichever one is aware at the time."

I nodded. "Okay…"

"And if you get held up anywhere, and you don't think that you're going to be able to return before noon, then please call your mother. She'll want to be sure to make the child some lunch."

"Yeah, that's fine," I replied, turning to give Esme a small smile of appreciation.

He nodded thoughtfully then. "I'm going to remain out here and observe her behavior…her attitude. I want to see if the Prozac is having any negative effects on her system."

"I'm sure she's fine," I told him. "She's been acting like herself…_both_ of them have," I pointed out.

"Right, but Bella hasn't been around, so we won't necessarily know how well her mind is taking it, until we've actually talked to her about it…but…" he hedged, trailing off.

He was blocking his thoughts from me.

"But, what?" I asked, somewhat impatiently.

"Well, son, with Bella's recent breakdown, I have no idea _when_ she'll be returning to help me figure out the positive and negative effects of the anti-depressant," he informed me.

I shrugged and sighed, already knowing that my Bella might be gone for a while, then turned my attention back to my little girl. I caught sight of Isabella in mid-air, doing a quick front flip, then landing on her back…her limp form bouncing against the black stretchy material, and peals of giggling laughter dancing on her beautiful lips the entire time.

I smiled. "Bella will come back around when Bella is ready. There's no rush…" I told him over my shoulder, then walked off the patio and started in the direction of my baby girl.

I approached the side of the trampoline, and when Isabella's laughter had died down, she turned her face to the side to peer at me with an adorable smile. She sat up, then got up on all fours and lithely crawled her way over to where I was standing. She quietly giggled as she sat down Indian style in front of me, then covered her chocolate eyes.

"Edward?"

"Yeah?"

"Peek-a-boo!" she exclaimed, uncovering her eyes and smiling brightly at me.

I smiled and took her warm hands in my own, then kissed that little button nose. "Hey, pretty girl…?" I trailed off softly with a smile.

"Yeah?" she squeaked.

I squinted my eyes a bit in thought. "What type of books do you like, sweetheart?" I asked curiously.

Her bottom teeth caught her top lip and she sucked on it for a few seconds, seeming to think about her answer. "Where's Waldo, and the velvety bunny rabbit, and the curious georgey monkey, and my princess fairies tales, and the green eggs in ham, and-"

I chuckled softly, cutting her off. "Okay, baby…I think I have a pretty good idea of what you would like," I told her.

She slightly cocked her head to the side and gazed at me curiously. "Why?"

"I'm going to go get you some books for your story times," I told her.

She smiled. "Can we go now?" she asked excitedly.

Instead of telling her 'no', I stepped a few inches to the side and let her get a good look at what was behind me.

"Wow, baby girl…look at _that_," I whispered to her.

She gasped, wanting to be in on the secret. "Look-it at what?" she whispered back.

"Look at all those sparkly, pretty things that Alice set out for you to play with…" I trailed off softly.

She smiled when she caught sight of all the art supplies, her play-doh and chalk included. I let her scan at the items and waited until her hesitant gaze turned to an excited one under Jasper's influence, before I spoke again.

"Do you wanna go play with her?" I asked then.

Isabella nodded and reached for me, so I hooked my hands under her shoulders and took her off the trampoline, then hugged her small form to my chest. I knew that I would miss her terribly and that I would be ridden with anxiety while I went into town to buy a few books for her.

I hated this. I wanted to bring her with me.

But, if what everyone, my Bella included, was saying was true…then, this is 'for the best'.

This…this fucking _testing_ of my strength and will to separate myself from her, so that, maybe, one day, I can stay gone hunting long enough to feed until I am truly satisfied. And, maybe, in the process, I can also give my mate the opportunity to reestablish her relationship with my family members, without my constant interference.

_It's still bullshit._

I took Isabella over to the patio, where Alice was waiting, and set her down on her bare feet. Isabella dropped down to her knees, kneeling by her chalk bucket, and immediately opened it. She pulled out a piece of red chalk, and her eager little hand began tracing the chalk along the pavement's rough surface.

I squatted down beside her and softly rubbed my hand up and down her back, getting her attention. "Isabella, baby…I'll be back soon, okay?"

"Edward…" she trailed off softly.

"Yes, angel?"

"I wanna go with you," she told me then, turning her sad gaze to look at me.

I nodded. "I know honey, but I'm going to get you some _surprise_ books…and you have to stay here and play with your toys, if you want them to be a surprise," I reasoned.

"Surprise?" she squeaked curiously, her expression no longer sad.

I nodded and gave her a reassuring smile. "Mm-hmm…books that you haven't read yet, but that you're going to like a lot," I clarified for her.

"But what about the ones I like already?"

"I'm getting those too, baby girl," I assured her.

"Edward?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you…" she trailed off softly, then dropped the chalk, and scooted herself onto my lap.

I sat down on the pavement then, relaxing out of my squatting position, and keeping my little girl held to me for a cuddle. "I love you, too," I told her, placing a cool kiss to her temple.

"When will you come back to me?" she asked.

"In a little bit. Probably an hour, or so…" I trailed off, lightly skimming my fingertips along her bare arm.

I marveled at the goose bumps that it had ignited on her creamy flesh while Isabella slowly nodded.

"You're going to have so much fun playing with your toys, angel. You get to jump on your trampoline, and swing on your swing, and color with Alice…" I trailed off encouragingly.

I knew then that Jasper was actively trying to influence my girl's tempered emotions to ones of excitement and happiness.

"Yah-huh…I'm gonna have fun," she agreed softly.

"Isabella, do you want to color with me?" Alice asked from her seat at the umbrella-shaded table.

Isabella gazed at Alice curiously from her spot on my lap and smiled shyly at her. I sighed and kissed her soft temple one last time, the patted her bottom, encouraging her to get up off my lap.

Isabella turned her head to stare at me then, her eyes filled with apprehension and uncertainty, but at my reassuring smile and encouraging nod, she finally stood from my lap and slowly walked over to the table, then took a seat across from my sister.

I stood from the ground and walked over to where my two favorite girls were sitting at the moment. I stepped up behind Isabella and bent down to whisper in her ear, taking the opportunity to inhale the sweetest aroma in the whole wide world.

"I'll be back soon, angel," I murmured my assurance.

"Kay…" she whispered back, never taking her shy gaze away from the pretty pixie before her.

I saw how Alice smiled at Isabella and offered her a purple marker, before I turned and made my way to the garage.

I wanted to stay close by. My past experiences of leaving my mate behind only cemented that decision, so I just ended up going to the small family-owned bookstore here in Forks.

It was a fairly new place, having only opened up a few months ago, and even though they didn't have a huge selection like the Borders in Port Angeles, I knew that they would have what I was looking for. I just needed to pick up about a dozen children's books, then I could be on my way back home to my mate.

As I stood in my position as third in the check-out line, carrying some books under my arm, I noticed the brightly lit parking lot outside. My eyes widened as I backed out of the line, under the façade that I had changed my mind on a few of my selections, and still needed to browse the store. When I made it to an empty aisle in the far corner of the small building, I pulled out my cell phone and dialed Alice's number.

_*RING*_

"She's fine," my sister greeted dryly.

I rolled my eyes. "Alice, when am I going to be able to leave this store?" I hissed under my breath.

She was quiet for a moment before she answered, "Um…in about…eight minutes."

I nodded to myself, relieved. "Alright. So…um-"

"She's fiiine," Alice's melodic voice sang lightly in my ear, already guessing what I was about to ask.

"I know that, Alice…but, what is she _doing_? Is she coloring…jumping…swinging? Is she having fun? Did she cry-"

"And it's sparkly!" Isabella's voice exclaimed in the back round of Alice's phone then, interrupting my inquiry.

I chuckled softly, my anxiety at missing her dissipating with the sound of her adorable child-like voice. "Alice, let me talk to her."

"Okay, just a sec," she told me.

I stood in the empty aisle and leaned my back against the wall, double checking my choices on the books I had picked out for my little girl. I had a huge volume full of classic fairytales, The Velveteen Rabbit, a few Where's Waldo books, The Little Princess, Goodnight Moon, I Love You Forever, Curious George, a couple Dr. Seuss books, the Precious Moments collection of Bedtime stories and Through-The-Day stories, Magic Treehouse, and The Secret Garden. I nodded, satisfied that this would be enough.

Little giggles sounded over the phone then.

"Isabella…" I called softly, getting her attention.

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

"Hi!" she squeaked.

_Adorable._

I chuckled. "Hi baby…what are you doing?"

"I was swingin on my fun tree swing and now I'm playin in the sparklies. What are _you_ doooin?"

"I'm picking out the surprise books for you."

"Edward?"

"What baby?"

"Do you sparkle too?"

My eyes widened a bit.

_Uhmm…_

"What do you mean, angel?"

"Your sissy sparkles, and your daddy and mommy sparkle…do you sparkle too?"

I realized then, that the sun wasn't just shining down on the parking lot outside. It was also shining in my backyard.

I sighed. "Yes, baby…" I trailed off quietly.

"Me too!"

I furrowed my brow. "What?"

"I got sparklies on me too, Edward. Alice is lettin me use the soft brush to put the sparklies on my arm," she told me.

_She painting on herself?_

Great.

"Well, that's great, honey…" I said, fighting a grimace and imagining the mess that either my Bella, or myself, was going to have to clean up.

"Edward?"

"Yes, angel?"

"I love you."

I smiled. "I love you too, sweetheart."

"You're mine, huh?"

"Yes."

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"I been a good girl," she told me.

"That's good."

"Yah-huh, and your mommy got me a pop for bein good and listenin when it was time to wash my haaands…"

"Why did you have to wash your hands?"

"B'cuz they got dirty in the chalk bucket. My hands were pretty like shiny rainbows, Edward, but your mommy said that I gotta wash the chalkies off if I wanted to have a pop."

I nodded. "Well, I'm glad you're being a good girl while I'm away."

"Yah-huh, and Edward?"

"What is it, baby love?"

"I gotta potty," she whispered into the phone then.

I chuckled. "Isabella…you don't have to ask to go potty. Just go, honey. No one is going to stop you," I assured her.

"But why?"

"Why what, angel?"

"How come I don't gotta ask?"

"You just don't, sweetie. Go inside and go potty," I told her.

"But Edward?"

"What baby?"

"When I get done pottyin, can I come back outside and play?"

"Yes."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

"Kay, I gotta potty."

I smiled. "Alright love, give the phone back to Alice and go potty," I told her.

"Kay, and Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

"Love you too, sweetheart."

"Kay, good bye-bye."

"Bye, baby."

"Hey," Alice chirped over the line then.

"Hey…is she going to the bathroom?" I asked uncertainly.

"Yes. It's so weird how she thinks she needs your permission…" she trailed off.

I nodded. "Yes…it is. I have to work on that with her. So, what's up with the 'sparklies' on her arm, Alice?" I interrogated.

"Oh!" she chirped. "Yeah…the sun suddenly decided to fucking _shine_, giving me no notice whatsoever, so the three of us were caught off guard by that. Isabella was on the swing when she gasped in amazement at how 'sparkly' we all were. She wanted to sparkle too, so I'm placating her with these paints. Don't worry, Edward…they're totally washable. I wouldn't have brought them out here for the five year old, if they weren't non-toxic and easy to wash off skin."

I sighed. "Alright…as long as she's having fun," I conceded quietly.

"She is."

"Well, I'm going to pay for these books, then I'll be on my way home."

"Be sure to take your time dawdling in that line Edward. You still have four minutes before you can walk out to your car," she warned me.

I rolled my eyes. "I know, Alice."

"Okay, well bye."

"Bye," I said before flipping my phone closed.

I sighed, then slowly walked up to the front of the store to take my place back in line. I lucked out in the time department, because it took three whole minutes for the cashier to get through the person in front of me, then ring up my purchase. After I paid the $110 bill, I grabbed the plastic bag full of my little girl's brand new story time books, then walked outside, glad for the returning cloud cover.

I listened to my Ipod in the car ride back home, imagining Marie in the seat next to be, singing her little heart out. I missed Marie, and I hoped that she would come back around to hang out some more today.

About half way home, my phone rang. I saw Carlisle's number on the caller ID before I answered it.

I flipped my phone open and held it to my ear. "Yeah?"

"Son, how far away are you?"

"About ten minutes, why?" I asked, hearing Isabella's voice faintly in the back round.

"Well…Isabella is being…um, difficult."

"What is she doing?"

He lightly chuckled then. "She's up in a tree, and she won't come down. Not even for a tootsie pop. One of us could always _make_ her come down, but I don't think we need to take such drastic measures as of yet. She's in no danger. I just think she's upset because Alice took her marker away and Jasper told her she had to wash a…um, _picture_, off of her skin," he told me.

"What picture?"

"Well, she was drawing on herself, which is nothing unusual, but the picture that she drew is quite offensive, Edward. It's a swastika."

_Fucking Jim._

I exhaled sharply. "You tell her that if she doesn't get down from that tree _right fucking now_, then she's going to be in trouble when I get home. I want her down _now_, Carlisle. I don't like her climbing those damn trees anyway, and she should be listening to you, but she's not. Tell her that I said she needs to _listen_."

"Isabella…" he called out then. "Your Edward said that you need to start listening, sweetheart. Now, it's time to come down…"

"Nooo…" I heard Isabella whine, to which I rolled my eyes.

"Damn it," I grumbled under my breath.

"Yes, dear…now, come on down. Be a big girl, Isabella, and do as your told," Carlisle said.

"No b'cuz you're gonna take my pretties away and I want my Edwaaard…" Isabella's voice trailed off.

"Carlisle," I said, getting his attention.

"Yes?"

I pressed harder on the gas pedal, accelerating my speed. "I'll be home in a minute. If you can get her down, then have her sit in one of the lawn chairs to stay and wait for me," I said grimly, before I flipped my phone closed.

When I arrived home, I left the bag of books in the living room, and paused at the back door to take in the scene before me. My family knew of my presence, but Isabella didn't. I had to fight a smile at her appearance.

She was pouting adorably, sitting on the lawn chair with her sparkly arms crossed over her chest. I could see the thin coat of sparkle paint covering her bare arms and legs. Her small white camisole top was riding up a bit, allowing me a peek at the small pink marker heart on her little hip bone.

The picture in question though, was large and it was on her left forearm, drawn in bold with black marker. It was an ugly symbol marring her beautiful perfection. My eyes squinted into a glare, zeroing in on the wretched swastika ruining my mate's creamy white flesh. I had to get it _off_ of her.

Now.

"If you would have listened, then you wouldn't be in a time-out right now, little darlin," Jasper informed my little girl.

She glared up at him, but her pursed lips kept her quiet for now.

I stayed standing on this side of the glass door as I listened to my family's thoughts. I wanted to know what had happened while I was gone. I didn't want to hear it, I wanted to see it.

Apparently, Isabella had come down from the tree when Carlisle told her that if she didn't start listening, she would be in trouble with me when I got home. When she dropped down from the low branch, he told her to sit in the lawn chair to wait for me. She glared at him, then protectively palmed the swastika on her left forearm and stomped past the four vampires to take her seat at the patio.

When Alice tried to persuade Isabella to let her wash the black marker off her skin, Isabella started going on about "This is my daddy's pretty" and "He lets me color it on all the time" and "He'll kill you if I tell that you took it off of me". After those remarks, they decided to leave the subject alone and let me handle this situation as I saw fit.

I sighed, seeing a difficult discussion looming up ahead. Isabella didn't believe that Jim was dead, and she obviously thought that he was going to show up to get her anytime now.

I silently stepped out onto the patio just as Isabella piped up to Jasper, "You can't make me take my pretties off, b'cuz my Daddy likes it."

"Isabella," I called her name firmly.

Her head whipped around in my direction and she smiled at me. I gave her a small smile in return as she stood from her chair and came over to me. She wrapped her arms around my waist for a hug, and after cradling her to my chest for seven seconds, I whispered in her ear that we needed to talk.

She nodded. "Edward?"

I loosened my hold on her and stepped back. "What?"

She showed me her arm. "I got my glitters on, so I can sparkle 'n shine just like you, huh…and I got my daddy's pretty on, too," she told me.

I gripped her thin arm in my cold hand, and traced the picture. "Isabella, this is not a 'pretty', this is an 'ugly'. Anything that has to do with your daddy is bad, sweetheart. This needs to come off, and it needs to come off _now_."

Isabella furrowed her brow up at me and tried to pull her arm out of my grasp.

I shook my head. "No…" I trailed off firmly.

"But my daddy, Edwa-"

"Is _not_ here. He will never be here, and he's not coming back, because he's dead."

Her eyes started to water and she sniffled. "I don't believe you."

I continued on, as if she hadn't spoken. "And if I ever hear you telling people how your daddy is going to 'kill them', then you're going to be in a lot of trouble, young lady. You're daddy won't be killing _anything_ because he is _dead_," I said with finality.

"So, this picture…" I trailed off, gesturing to the symbol on her arm, "needs to go away and never come back. Just like your daddy."

She whimpered then. "But what about my other pretties…?" she asked hesitantly.

I softened my gaze and let go of her arm. I hooked my hands underneath her shoulders and picked her up, holding her to my chest. As I turned and made my way back inside the house, I said, "Your marker heart and your sparklies are _very_ pretty, baby, but unfortunately, they're going to come off in the bath, too."

"Nooo…I don't want a bath," she whined, and pushed her fists against my chest.

"Too bad," I replied, heading for the stairs.

"Nooo…" she whined again, then whimpered and began to cry.

I sighed. "Stop it, Isabella."

She didn't respond, just cried louder and kicked her legs out at nothing, throwing a fit. After I swatted her ass for it, she laid her head on my shoulder and began mumbling that she didn't want a bath…that she wanted to sparkle forever, just like me. She cried and begged me not to take away her 'pretties'.

I almost gave in, but caught sight of that black abomination on her arm, and it served to steel my resolve.

I walked into our bathroom, then shut and locked the door behind me, before setting Isabella down on her feet. She was still crying, so I kissed her forehead and grabbed her hand, holding it up in between us.

"Hey…pretty girl, look at me," I instructed softly.

She turned her watery gaze up at me, so I pointed to her manicured fingernails. "These are pretty…these sparkle n' shine, love. You'll still sparkle, baby girl, just not on your skin…" I pointed out gently.

She sniffled and stopped her sobs as she turned her gaze to focus intently on her glittery pastel pink fingernails. "Yeah-huh…" her voice cracked as she quieted her cries. She sniffled again. "And my pretty twinkle toes, Edwaaard," she said, lifting her small foot a bit for emphasis. "They sparkle, too."

I nodded. "Yes they do, baby," I agreed.

She sniffled again, asking for a tissue, so I grabbed a few squares of toilet paper and handed them to her, before I turned the tub's faucet on. I plugged the drain and told Isabella to undress and get in the tub.

There would be no bubbles or toys. This wasn't a regular bath time, this was about scrubbing the paint and marker off her skin. I would have to negate her bath time rule for this too.

_Fucking hell._

I quickly left the room to grab a clean pair of panties for Isabella to put on once I washed all that crap off her skin. She could redress in the clothes she had been wearing, though…they were still clean, she didn't need a new outfit.

When I entered the bathroom and shut the door behind me, once again, I noticed that Isabella was naked and obediently sitting in the middle of the big white tub while warm water continued to rush out of the faucet. I applied a new panty liner to the clean pair of blue cotton panties while I waited for the water to finish filling the tub.

"Edward?"

I grabbed a wash cloth and sat down on the tub's ledge. "Hmm?"

"Not sposta be nakey in front of people…" she mumbled with a shake of her head.

I nodded and gave her a small smile, feeling Jasper withdraw my lustful emotions at the sight of her perfect breasts.

"Good girl," I complimented.

She smiled up at me as I poured some body wash onto the wet wash cloth in my hand.

"I know my rules, huh…" she trailed off, a bit smug.

"Yes, that's _very_ good, angel. But right now, your bath time rule can take a little break because you need help scrubbing off all the glitter and marker mess, lovey."

"No spankins?" she asked curiously with a small shake of her head.

"None," I confirmed.

"Kay," she subtly nodded and made circles in the water with her finger tip as I grabbed the arm closest to me and started scrubbing Alice's paint off.

And so it began. I scrubbed her arms and legs, and did a general quick wash over her belly and back, as the only mark on that area of her skin, was the small pink heart on her hip bone. She hummed a song to me, telling me that it was from Snow White and that we needed to "whistle while we worked". I kissed her cheek and adorable button nose when she made the occasional comment that she loved me.

I was wringing warm water out of the wash cloth onto the black swastika when she made a comment about Jim again.

"Edward?"

I gently grasped her elbow and started a vigorous scrubbing motion with the sudsy washcloth over her marred flesh. "Hmm?"

"Daddy's gonna be mad…" she trailed off in a tone of warning.

I risked a glance at her before I focused back on my task. "Your daddy is dead, Isabella," I said flatly.

"Don't believe you…"

"I'm not lying," I promised.

She exhaled sharply. "Edward…"

My head snapped up to look at her face. "Bella?"

She furrowed her brow, her eyes quickly flicking around, taking in her surroundings. "What are you doing?" she asked.

I showed her the black swastika on her arm. "Scrubbing this shit off your arm."

"What…how-" she cut herself off, clenching her jaw, then sighed.

She flicked her chocolate eyes up to the ceiling then. "Edward?"

I widened my eyes, pausing my hand's scrubbing motion. "What baby?"

"When I'm all done with the soapies, can I have a lolly?"

I slowly commenced scrubbing her arm again, marveling at my Bella's quick appearance. Would she come back soon?

_I hope so._

"Maybe, angel…we'll see. It's almost lunch time," I told Isabella.

Isabella nodded, then sang, "I can have my lollies for dessert…lollies, lollies, yummy lollies…" her soft voice lilted, echoing in the large bathroom.

"Mm-hmm," I hummed in agreement, focusing on the progress this washcloth was making on the black marker. I knew it was working because the white piece of cloth was slowly beginning to turn black with the marker's residue.

Isabella took advantage of distraction and suddenly leaned forward to kiss me on the lips then, catching me completely off guard.

My eyes widened a bit in surprise as I backed my face away, "Woah…"

She smirked. "You look so fuckin sexy like that...go ahead and scrub me alllll clean, babe…I've been a dirty, dirty girl…" Marie trailed off in a sultry voice, giving me a wink.

I blinked, dumbfounded, as she leaned forward again and caught my lips with hers in a heated kiss.

It took me a few seconds, but I found the will to break away. I subtly shook my head in disbelief, not wanting to escalate anything to a sexual level with her right now. My Bella's awareness habits were obviously unstable at the moment, and I would _not_ risk Isabella making an appearance while I had my fucking face in between her legs.

"M-Marie, sweetheart, I'm trying to clean your arm, and-"

"Edward, I gotta get my baby dolly dressed for the new day after my soapies are done, huh?" Isabella asked.

I sighed and dropped the washcloth in the tub. "Yes, angel."

She noticed the discarded rag and asked, "Are the soapies done _now_?"

I nodded, then cupped some warm bath water in my hand, and brought it up to run over her forearm. After she dunked it and rubbed her palm against the skin a few times, the black soap rinsed off completely and her creamy skin was no longer tainted.

After making sure the 'itchy-hotts' weren't bothering her anymore, I unplugged the tub's drain, then instructed Isabella to dry off and get dressed in here while I went to the bedroom. She nodded with a muttered, "Kay," so I left the bathroom to let her get dressed while I ran downstairs to grab the bag of new books from the living room.

Upon my return to the bedroom, I made quick work of stuffing the several children's books in my Bella's bookshelf, giving them their own section on the bottom shelf. I listened to Isabella dress as I grabbed her doll, along with it's accessory bag, from it's basinet on the floor, and put them on the bed for her. After I selected Alvin and the Chipmunks for her to watch, I loaded it up on the flat screen and placed her pink MagnaDoodle on the bed, as well.

Isabella came out of the bathroom then, dressed in the same clothes that she wore when she went in there; jean shorts and a white camisole top. She saw her toys laying on the bed and beamed up at me in appreciation, then climbed up onto the bed, heading straight for her baby doll.

I pressed PLAY on the remote and went over to the bedside where Isabella sat.

"Sweetheart, what would you like for lunch?"

She reached a curious hand in her doll's accessory bag, then muttered, "Fruity Pebbles…"

"Nope."

She pulled out some doll clothes. "Lollies…"

"Uh-uh, baby girl, _lunch_ not breakfast or dessert," I clarified.

She grabbed her doll and set it on her lap. "Teddy crackers…"

"Hmm…what else?"

She began to undress her doll. "My peanut butter and jellies," she mumbled.

I nodded. "And…carrot sticks?" I suggested.

She nodded and looked over at the doll clothes that she had just laid out on the bed, trying to pick a new outfit. "Yeah, the baby ones, Edward…"

"With some ranch dip?"

"Mm-hmm," she hummed and nodded at me again, focusing on her task of being 'a good mommy', by dressing her doll.

I smiled softly at her concentration, then leaned forward to place a cool kiss on her forehead. "Okay, sweetness, you stay here and dress your dolly. Alvin and the Chipmunks are coming on the TV, so you can watch them while I go make your lunch. Okay, angel?"

She tore her gaze away from her doll to smile up at me. "Kay."

"I'll be downstairs, baby girl," I reiterated.

She nodded. "M'kaaay…" she trailed off, starting to dress her naked doll in it's new outfit now.

I turned and made my downstairs to the kitchen, then. I made the usual unusual sandwich, by placing peanut butter on one slice of bread, and strawberry jam on the other. I smashed the two slices together, just like I had done before. After putting a small handful of cinnamon teddy grahams on Isabella's plate, I grabbed five baby carrot sticks from their small package in the fridge, then poured some ranch dressing next to the cold vegetables.

I smiled down at the quick and complete meal, then left the plate on the counter to go extract my little girl from her toys in the bedroom. As I traveled up the steps, I gave a slight pause at the sounds of her heartbeat, then raced up the stairs, not wanting to believe, but knowing, that it was true…my little girl had fallen asleep for her afternoon nap.

Without eating her lunch first.

I sighed at the sight of her still, peaceful form, curled around Fuzzy bear on the gold comforter in the middle of the bed. Her pink lips were wrapped around the small thumb in her mouth, and her chest continued to rise and fall at a slow and steady pace with her even breaths.

_Looks like lunch will have to wait._

I silently walked to the closet and retrieved her pink microplush blankie, then tucked it around her small body. I turned the TV's volume down, then went back downstairs to place her plate of food in the fridge to wait until after she was done with her nap.

When I returned to the bedroom, I carefully laid down next to my sleeping beauty and softly trailed my fingers through her soft, silky hair, all the while, quietly humming her lullaby in her ear.

Well, this morning was…_eventful_, to say the least. And after another hour or two, my mate is going to wake up, and we'll get to do this all over again.

_Well, at least my days aren't boring anymore..._

I rolled my eyes at my internal thoughts. No…my days are definitely not _boring_ anymore. Far from it, actually.

I can only hope that my Bella will make an appearance for her therapy session this afternoon. I know that it's not likely, but she did peek out for a second in the bathtub…but I also know that that doesn't necessarily mean anything. I don't know when she'll be back. It's clear that after her emotional breakdown, her mind is actively trying to shield her from certain things right now, sending Marie and Isabella to take over, until my Bella feels safe enough to be aware again.

As my girl, Marie, would say…'that's all fine and fucking dandy', but I'm not sure how my baby Isabella would handle a therapy session with my father right now. I'm sure that Marie would be fine, but…I don't know about my skittish little girl. She seems to be very unpredictable, not to mention, temperamental.

I sighed then, missing my Bella, and concentrating on her relaxed facial features. She was just so damn beautiful.

_My_ Bella.

Yes, I miss her, but this was okay, too. I could take care of my baby and hang out with my girl until my Bella can come back to me. I could do this for as long as she needs me to….be anything she needs me to be. I've proven that I can alter myself to be many things for my mate; vampire, human, boyfriend, parent, and a lover.

I am clearly multi-talented _and_ awesome.

And I will always cater to her needs, and her needs, alone, because I am hopelessly devoted and completely obsessed with her.

She is _mine_, so whether she's sucking her thumb, smoking a joint, or cumming on my face, I will _always_ be what she needs me to be.

"Mine…"

The soft whisper fell from her lips, as her little thumb slipped out of her mouth, making me smile.

Yes.

_You are mine._


	47. Multiplicity

A/N:

I'm a beta now for my bestie ~ she's writing this badass Morganville Fanfic. So, if you love Claire & Shane, then go check it out ~ Wicked Hurt, Sweetest Love by Divascooby.

Kay, back to story time!

~ ENJOY ~

It's a long one...

* * *

EPOV

I was in the bathroom, cleaning the sparkle residue out of the tub, when I heard my girl's heartbeat pick up it's pace, signaling that she was waking up. I smiled to myself, ridiculously excited at being able to look into those warm chocolate depths again. She'd kept them hidden from me for the past seventy-two fucking minutes, and I was getting impatient.

She hadn't been asleep for more than twenty minutes before I found myself staring intently at her closed eyelids, willing them to open for me. I wanted to poke her, or 'accidentally' turn the radio on, so that she'd wake up and play with me. But as much as I wanted to wake her up, I knew that she needed her rest, so I decided to leave temptation alone and clean up Isabella's mess in the bathroom instead.

I rinsed the Clorox cleaning solution off the bottom of the marble tub with the detachable shower head, then put the shower curtain back in place. I had just finished putting the tub scrubber away, when I heard the first 'Edward' fall from her lips.

_Aw._

"In here, honey," I called out, rushing over to the sink to clean the Clorox solution from my hands. I didn't want this stuff getting on my mate's sensitive skin when I touched her.

I heard little bare feet padding across the hardwood floor then, heading in my direction, so I went to dry my hands on the little white towel by the mirror. When she entered the bathroom a second later, she wrapped her thin arms around my waist for a hug. I twisted around in her embrace, so that we were facing each other, and wrapped my arms around her warm body.

"Hey sweetheart…did you have a good nap?" I asked, gently cradling her head to my chest.

I ran my cool fingertips through her long hair and down her back while she nodded. I dropped a quick kiss to the top of her head, then pulled back to look at her. She lifted her face to look into my eyes then, and what I saw there made me smile.

_My Bella._

Those beautiful chocolate eyes sparkled up at me, and her soft cheeks lit up in a rosy blush under my gaze. I bent my head down, wanting to capture her pink lips in a chaste kiss, but she returned it eagerly, covering my cold lips in the heat of her warm ones. She pressed her body against mine, reaching her little fingertips up and over my cold cheek, and into my hair. When she gripped onto the hair at the nape of my neck and moaned into my mouth, I reached down, cupping a thigh in each hand, and lifted her from the ground. She squealed in surprise, then giggled as I turned us around and set her down on the countertop. I stood in between her legs and smiled against her lips, loving the sweet taste of her. I cupped her pink cheeks in my palms, and relished in the amazing feeling that her tugging little hands were igniting along my scalp.

She hummed against my lips, "So fucking sweet…" she whispered then glided her warm, wet tongue along my bottom lip.

I smiled at the amazing tingly feeling it had caused on my mouth and chin. "I missed you…" I whispered against her lips.

She nodded. "I love you," she murmured against mine.

Now it was my turn to trail my fingertips into her hair. I gathered a bunch of her silky locks at the nape of her neck in my hand, and pulled my lips away from hers as I gently yanked her head to the side. She gasped at the movement, then smiled as realization seemed to dawn on her. I chuckled as I skimmed my lips along her jaw and felt a purr ignite in my chest.

"I love you, too," I purred softly in her ear, and watched in smug amusement as tiny goose bumps rose along the side of her delectable little neck.

_Mine._

"Mmm, Bella…my beautiful girl," I cooed in her ear.

I had to fight a smile at the shiver that _that_ had caused her.

_Mmm, so responsive…_

I brought my lips to the juncture between her neck and shoulder as her hands tightened even further in my hair, keeping me held to her. Both her heart rate and breathing had accelerated, and I enjoyed the sound of her rushing blood as it sang in my ears.

"Bella…tell me what you want," I purred against her warm skin. I let my tongue snake out to wet the surface for me as I wrapped my arm around her back, wanting to keep her cradled to my chest.

"Mark me," was her breathy whisper.

I chuckled and kissed the wet spot on her neck, then pulled back to look into her lustful gaze. I breathed in deeply, pulling in her deliciously aroused scent and brought my lips back to hers one more time.

"Be a good girl and say please," I murmured against her mouth, then withdrew my lips from hers, wanting to focus my eyes on them as they formed the magic word that would be my undoing.

"Please," she pleaded, but it came out as more of a whimper.

I exhaled sharply, loving the things that that one little word did to my body.

_Yes…_

I cocked my head to the side a bit and smiled in satisfaction at my mate's aroused state.

"Aw, my Bella…you want me?" I asked softly.

She nodded, so I unwrapped my arm from around her back and slipped my hand in between us, then let my fingers lightly tease the jean-covered juncture in between her thighs. She bit her lip and moaned, her lustful gaze looking pleadingly into my eyes.

She looked so fucking beautiful like this…so completely at my mercy and begging for the pleasure that only I could bring her.

My left hand stayed tight in her hair, keeping her held like this so that her neck stayed exposed to me, while my right hand continued to tease her.

I kissed her again, and when her little hips starting moving on their own against my hand, I whispered to her, "Does that feel good, baby?"

She gasped. "Edward…" she exhaled my name as a moan, and the sound was so fucking erotic.

Her cheeks lit up for me in another delicious blush and the sight of it was incredibly intoxicating. I suddenly wanted to reward her body's reaction to me. She was being such a good girl…so damn responsive.

I applied a bit more pressure and kept up a tight circular motion with one finger, intently focusing on where I knew that pretty little clit was, while I stared into her eyes.

"Yes, love?"

"I want you," she told me.

I chuckled darkly, never stopping my circling fingertip, and nodded. "I know…"

She bit her lip and moaned. "Edward, please…"

_That's right, love. Fucking beg for it._

I smirked. "My Bella, so greedy…" I playfully admonished, bending my head to trail kisses from my favorite spot on her warm neck, down to her exposed shoulder.

Her moans and gasps gradually grew louder, and I knew that she was getting frustrated with my teasing, so after I let myself delight in a few more of those beautiful wanton sounds coming from my mate, I brought my mouth to her ear and murmured my assurance to her.

"Shhh, baby…I'll make it feel good," I said, then kissed her again, and let my lips skim along her smooth jaw, back down to my favorite spot on her neck, and sucked on the delicate flesh there, needing to leave my mark on her now.

I wanted to strip her naked and bury my face in between her legs until she was screaming my name in ecstasy, but I couldn't do that because of that damn infection. All clit-licking activities were going to have to be postponed until the morning, and I was suddenly so fucking disappointed and pissed off at that realization.

I'd be damned if I was going to leave my girl wanting though, so I kept up my ministrations and purred softly in my own content as I took her warm flesh in between my lips. I gently suckled on it, bringing her hot, pulsing, sweet blood to the surface and saturating my mouth with the heavenly taste of it. I lovingly licked the mark I had just made, then pressed a cool kiss to it, before moving an inch to the left and starting again on a fresh piece of flesh.

_Fuck, she tastes amazing._

When her breathy moans turned into high-pitched whimpers, I tightened my fist in her hair and quickened the pace of my hand, then let out a small possessive growl as my mate climaxed because of me. All because of me.

_Mine._

That's fucking right.

After paying the same reverent attention to the second mark I'd left on her skin, I brought my lips back to hers in a heated kiss. She sighed contentedly into my mouth, and clung to me. I relished in the sweet taste of her breath and gulped it down, wanting to take the very essence of her into my being. I loosened my grip on her long silky locks, then brought my hand out from in between us to wrap my arm around her again.

I picked her up off the counter and we continued exploring each other's mouths as I brought her over to the bed. She smiled against my lips as I sat us down, and kept her straddled in my lap. I laid back on the gold comforter and folded my hands behind my head, gazing up at the beautiful sight before me. She quirked a small smile as she bent down to give my lips one last chaste kiss, then straightened back up, straddling my hips.

"I love you," she told me.

I brought one hand out from behind my head and lightly trailed my fingertips along the surface of her flat belly. She giggled at the contact. I loved the sound of it.

"I love you too, Bella."

She moved her hips against mine then, sending an electric current throughout my entire body.

_Ohhh fuck!_

Her delicious heat was just right fucking there, and when my eyes flicked back up to hers, I saw a mischievous glint in them.

Yeah. She knew exactly what she was doing.

"Bella…" I warned.

She raised her eyebrows at me, a small smile playing on her lips. "What?" she asked lightly, before grinding herself on me again.

My hands shot out and caught her hips, stilling them and lifting her up in the air, so that there was at least six inches of space between her sex and mine.

She giggled at the sudden movement, as it caused her to lean forward and catch herself by sprawling her hands out against my chest. I smiled up at her as she planted a warm kiss to the tip of my nose.

I subtly shook my head. "Naughty girl…" I playfully admonished.

Her teeth caught her bottom lip as she slightly cocked her head to the side. "I'm _so naughty_," she agreed in a breathy voice, giving me a wink.

It reminded me a lot of Marie.

I chuckled, then moved her hips forward and sat her back down on top of me, relieved that she was straddling my stomach now. I started lightly caressing her stomach again and smiled up at her, glad to have my Bella back for the time being.

"Edward?"

"Hmm?"

She furrowed her brow in a confusion for a second. "Before, when I was in the bathtub…what the hell was that about?"

I smiled at the memory. "Isabella…yeah, she was all sparkly and I had to help her wash the paint off," I told her, deliberately leaving out the swastika details.

"Oh. Okay."

"It was adorable," I added as an afterthought.

She nodded, her stomach muscles contracting slightly under my cool, tickling fingers. Alvin and the Chipmunks were still playing quietly on the flat screen, so my Bella turned her attention to it.

I let my thoughts drift and was suddenly very unsure of what we just did…what the protocol was on sexual activity while she still had that wretched infection. Would she start hurting again? Will her skin get irritated? She's almost healed, and the irritation almost completely gone, but could having an orgasm reverse her body's progress?

I stopped my slow fingertips and gazed up into her eyes, concerned. "How do you feel?"

She turned her head down to look at me shrugged casually. "Fine."

_Fine…I hate that fucking word._

Before I could interrogate any further, she asked, "Why?"

I smiled up at her apologetically and sighed, debating on how to tell her about the infection. I was kind of hoping that she'd be gone a little while longer, so that she wouldn't have to come back to irritated intimate skin and a bruised jaw.

I knew that she wouldn't want me, her boyfriend, to know about something like this. She'd be so embarrassed when she discovered that, not only did I know about the infection, but I've also been treating it. She shouldn't be embarrassed about any of her natural human functions or vulnerabilities, though. It's ridiculous, and it's not as if there was an alternative solution to this particular problem anyway. I mean, Isabella sure as hell wasn't going to insert the applicator and apply the medication. She'd just keep crying and expect me to fix it.

And that's exactly what I did. I fucking fixed it.

"You have an infection, sweetheart," I said hesitantly.

She furrowed her thin brow. "What do you mean?"

"Last night, Isabella woke up crying. So after asking her some questions about what was wrong, I checked her out. And…you have a yeast infection, baby," I informed her.

She gasped, but I continued on, ignoring her blush and the fact that her hands were now hiding her face from my view.

_Aw._

"It's alright, sweetheart, I gave her the treatment and you're healing beautifully. You'll be fine by the morning," I assured her quickly.

She sighed and just barely spread her little fingers, peeking out at me through them. "I'm healing _beautifully_?" she asked, mumbling through her embarrassment.

I nodded and hummed in agreement. "Mm-hmm…I checked."

"Oh, my _God_!" she exclaimed, lifting her leg and un-straddling my stomach. She plopped down at my side instead, muttering softly, "I can't believe this…"

I sat up and wrapped my arm around her frail shoulders, tucking her into my side. "Don't be embarrassed, love," I murmured softly in her ear.

She shook her head and let out a shaky breath. "I am…" she insisted.

"Are you embarrassed to be mine?" I asked simply.

"No," she said, her voice raised with her conviction.

I smiled. "Good…because you shouldn't be," I told her. "You're mine Bella, and I will take care of you. Always. You belong to me…_every_ single part of you belongs to me," I reaffirmed as I placed a soft kiss to the two tiny marks I had left on her smooth skin.

_Mine._

At her silence, I continued on. "If you hurt, I'll make it better. If you're sick, I'll take care of you. That's all last night was about, love…nothing more," I assured her with a subtle shrug, trying to maintain a casual façade about the situation.

She began to relax into my embrace as I ran my hand along the length of her bare arm. She sighed after another minute of silence. "Thank you…" she whispered.

I kissed her cheek. "I'll always take care of you, baby. No need to thank me," I assured her.

She nodded just as her stomach began to growl.

I hooked my index finger underneath her chin then, and tilted it to the side, trying to get her to look at me. She'd been avoiding my gaze for the past five minutes because of her embarrassment, and it was frustrating the hell out of me. I wanted to see her big chocolate eyes, damn it. I smiled in satisfaction when her eyes finally flicked over and locked onto mine.

_Good girl._

"You fell asleep before you could eat lunch, so it's waiting downstairs for you in the fridge," I informed her.

She nodded. "I gotta use the restroom first," she told me as she slid off the bed and headed towards the bathroom.

I got off the bed and went over to the dresser. "Bella, wait…here," I said, as I handed over the small tube of external cream.

She took it from me and blushed as she looked down at her palm, realizing what I had given her. She mumbled a shy, "Thanks," then scurried off towards the bathroom.

_Adorable._

I informed her that I would be downstairs in the dining room, getting her lunch ready for her. She closed the bathroom door with a shouted, "Okay!", completely dismissing me from the room.

I smiled at her lingering embarrassment; it was so cute, then turned and made my way downstairs. After I took the plate of peanut butter and jelly sandwich, teddy grahams and carrot sticks out of the fridge, I stared down at it and wondered whether or not I should make her something different. All three items could be classified as 'kid food', and my Bella definitely wasn't a kid.

_Yeah…make something different._

I nodded to myself, and tossed Isabella's kid food in the trash, then took out the ingredients to make a normal, grown-up sandwich for my Bella.

BPOV

I finished up in the bathroom and washed my hands, marveling at all the thoughts running through my mind at the moment.

First, Edward is all up close and personal while I'm on my period, and now he's all hands-on with this damn yeast infection.

_Ew._

I rubbed my bare thighs together, noticing the slight itchy sensation that proved my life was beyond fucked right now, and that this situation was really real. That this was actually happening.

_Oh my God._

My boyfriend has been treating my fucking cooter infection while I act like a damn five year old.

_What the fuck._

I stared at my reflection in the mirror as I took a minute to look at what Isabella was trying to show me. She showed me a memory of her laying on the bed, pantyless, while Edward hovered over her and pointed out different medications, explaining what they were. She felt his cold fingers rubbing a white substance on her 'cuntie', then sent me vibes of confusion at that particular memory.

_Ugh…gross._

From what I can see, it's like a parent changing a baby's diaper. At least, that's what it reminds me of. Him cradling me to his chest, then laying me down on the bed, and taking my panties off while he offers me different toys as a distraction. Then…oh god, _wiping_ me down there-

**Where's my Edward?** Isabella asked, interrupting my reverie.

I sighed and shook my head, not wanting to even think about what else Edward might have wiped.

_He's downstairs making lunch._

**I miss him. I want him. I wanna see him. Go downstairs and look at him. Now.**

_Damn, miss bossy…_

**No, Bell…go get the DS out and we can play MarioKart. My Peach is so badass-** Marie started before Isabella interrupted her.

**No, go see my Edward. I wanna see my Edward.**

**You see Edward all the fuckin time. Go get the game, Bell.**

**No, go see Edward.**

**I was on this fuckawesome race this morning, and I was winning, because I rock so fucking hard, and my Peach punked Bowser's ass, and we were speedin down-**

**Where's Edward?**

**-the ramp, and I got a star and it made my Peach all blinky, and then we were _really_ haulin ass down the rainbow-**

**I want Edwaaard…**

**Quit being a whiny little brat, you whiny fuckin brat! She's not gonna go see Edward, she's gonna go get the game, aren't you Bell?**

**Fuck you! And I'm not a brat, _you're_ a brat. I want my Edward and I _want_ him _now_!**

**You're the brat, you whiny little shit-**

_OH MY GOD!_ I mentally screamed, fed up with the constant arguing that seemed to be happening between them a lot lately.

"Bella?" Edward called up the steps.

I scowled at my reflection in the mirror, knowing that the girls could see me.

_Stop fucking arguing._

I left it at that and yelled back, "Coming!" before walking out of the room and meeting Edward on the third story landing.

Isabella giggled out **My Edward…** as he enveloped my hand in his own and walked with me down the steps.

**Brat** Marie taunted.

I rolled my eyes. _Stop it._

**You stop it** Isabella said, mocking me.

**Yeah, Bell…you stop it.**

I furrowed my brow. _Stop what?_

**Stop what?** Marie mocked.

_Ugh, you're annoying._

**_You're_ annoying** Marie countered.

**Yeah, Bella…_you're_ annoying** Isabella agreed.

_Whatever._

**Actually kid, _you're_ pretty fuckin annoying** Marie told Isabella.

**Actually bitch, _you're_ pretty fuckin annoying** Isabella countered.

**Fuck you, you annoying fucking brat.**

_Shut up._

**You're a bitch.**

You're a brat.

Fuck you.

Fuck you.

I sighed and slid into my seat at the dining table, trying to ignore the voices in my head.

_Fuck you both, now shut up._

**Fuck _you_, Bell. Now go get the game. I'll show you my Peach an-**

Isabella gasped. **Oooo! You talked mean to Bella, I'ma tell my Edward on youuuu!**

Marie scoffed. **You're such a fuckin snitch.**

I closed my eyes and slowly rubbed my temples at the developing headache.

"Bella, are you okay?" Edward's concerned voice brought me out of my reverie.

I opened my eyes and looked over at him, then sighed and nodded, "Yeah. The girls are just arguing, as usual…"

"Hmm…they had quite the little argument this morning," he informed me lightly.

I picked up my sandwich and took a bite of it, looking at him questioningly.

He chuckled. "Yeah, it seems as though Isabella wanted a story time, while Marie wanted to watch her music videos."

I nodded, "Sounds about right. It's okay, though…I can deal with the arguing. I've dealt with it before, ya know? It's just been a _really_ long time. It's gonna take some time getting used to it again…" I trailed off, grimacing.

He furrowed his brow. "What do you mean, love?"

I widened my eyes a bit, realizing what I had just said. I didn't want the Cullens knowing more than absolutely necessary about my disorder, but I guess there's nothing wrong with them knowing that I used to be a multiple.

_Right?_

**Don't tell 'em if you don't want to. All that stuff is just sposta be between us Bella, but you're bein a big blabber mouth by tellin my Edward's daddy all about it** Isabella told me.

I tried to shrug nonchalantly, but I'm not sure how well that worked out, so I just swallowed nervously and confessed, "Um…I've had this problem before, Edward. You know…more than one voice in my head…?" I hinted.

"What are you talking about? You had Isabella when you were little-" he started before I cut him off.

"Yeah, I did have Isabella, but eventually…there were others," I said slowly.

His eyes widened a bit. Actually, they widened _a lot_, but I continued, wanting to calm any fears that he may have of any more 'people' popping up.

"But that's over," I assured him quickly.

He looked worried. "Okay, Bella…um, _others_? Please explain," he pleaded.

I sighed in defeat, resigning to my fate of telling the entire fucking house the full extent of my crazy. "Okay, Edward? Just calm down because it's _okay_. Really, it is. They showed up when I was a kid, and they went away when I was a kid. The last eight months that I lived with Jim, my mind split beyond Isabella and there were a few others. But, when I was ten, and the court ordered it, I was placed in that state hospital, and through all of their extensive therapy bullshit, the others went away. _All_ of them went away. Well, all of them _except_ for Isabella, anyway," I explained simply.

He sighed. "They went away?" he asked, squinting his eyes in uncertainty.

I smiled, and grabbed his hand that lay on the table top, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Yes, honey. They went away."

He nodded, so I decided to explain a little more for his benefit. "See…Isabella was around for two years, then when I was seven, the others came around. So, needless to say, it was a huge complicated mess in my head for about three years, until I was ten, when they all went away, and it was just me and Isabella again. But she disappeared too, shortly after I left the hospital. Then, seven years later, Marie pops up. Then Isabella comes back. And then, _boom_…I'm a fucking multiple again. It's lovely," I said, letting my last comment drip with sarcasm.

To my utter surprise, he smiled at me. "That's great!"

_What?_

"What?" I asked with raised eyebrows.

He brought my hand that he was holding up to his lips, and quickly kissed my knuckles, before letting it go and standing from his seat at the table. He seemed so fucking excited for some reason.

"My Bella, don't you see what this means?"

I shook my head, utterly confused. "No…"

"You don't?"

"Please, enlighten me," I said dryly.

He chuckled. "Baby, if you got better before, then you can get better again," he encouraged with a bright smile.

I bit my lip and slowly nodded, wanting to placate him. I knew that it wasn't that easy, though.

His face fell momentarily as he seemed to think about something. "You said that Isabella stayed, even though these 'others' left…but that she eventually went away too, right? But not until after you left the hospital…" he trailed off in question.

"Yes. Isabella is very dominant, honey. She has a very dominant and possessive nature about her. She survived the therapy, fighting it every step of the way. She was very determined and adamant that this was her body as well, and that we needed each other," I informed him.

He furrowed his brow and nodded in agreement. "Right…"

"And that seems to be the problem now. With Isabella being so dominant, having the others around and being a multiple back then, wasn't that big a deal. I hardly even knew them, or what they did. In fact, I didn't even fully know their characters until I was about twelve years old and all the memories of what they had done resurfaced. It took two whole years _after_ they were gone, to become fully aware of what they did in my absence. Isabella was always an the forefront of my mind, often dealing with the other personalities so that I didn't have to. But now, as you know, Marie has her own sense of dominance about her. When she showed up, it was just me and her, and now that Isabella is back, Marie views _her_ as an 'other', and wants her to submit. But, Isabella views Marie in the same fashion, insisting that she was here _first_. Neither one is willing to back down."

He sighed sadly and sat back down in his seat. "That sounds so complicated, love…" he told me.

I nodded and took another bite of my sandwich. It was fucking delicious.

"But, you said that when the 'others' went away, some of their characteristics became apart of you?" he asked somewhat hopefully.

I swallowed and carefully fixed my gaze on him. Understanding seemed to dawn on me as I saw the hint of longing in his eyes. "Edward…" I said softly.

"Hmm?"

I gave him a small smile. "Will you miss Isabella and Marie after all of this?" I asked curiously in a quiet voice, already knowing the answer.

He nodded with a pained expression on his face.

**Aw** Isabella cooed.

**Why the hell does Edward look sad? Tell him that I said 'don't worry, be fuckin happy'** Marie told me.

I took his hand back in my own, loving him even more for his devotion to my two crazy alternates. "Honey, it'll be okay…I promise. And yes, some of the other's characteristics became apart of me. But, some of those same characteristics have split from me again, and now they are apart of Marie," I informed him.

He nodded, seeming to understand. "Okay…"

"Edward…I need you to understand something, alright? It seems complicated, but it's actually quite simple."

He furrowed his brow. "Okay…"

I nodded, then withdrew my hand from his and ran it through my hair, trying to figure out a simple way to explain this. I put my elbow on the table and rested my chin against my palm, gazing at the beautiful vampire before me.

"Marie is _me_. Isabella is _me_. When all of this is over, I will still be me. I will always be me, and that is who you fell in love with, right?"

"Yes, I love all of you, sweetheart," he assured me.

I nodded. "You love the five year old?"

He exhaled sharply at my mention of Isabella and immediately nodded. "_Yes_…I do. You can't even possibly begin to understand how much I absolutely adore-" he started, but I cut him off with a nod.

I sipped on my drink. "And the rebellious teen?"

"Yes, Bella. I love her _so much_. I always want her to be around…I never want her to leave. I'm addicted to her care-free attitude and I love listening to the sounds of her beautiful voice singing those-"

I smiled and cut him off again. "Okay, so do you see? You love _them_, and they are _me_. They'll incorporate themselves into me when all of this is through, Edward. Believe me…I know how it works. The process will be hard though. They are both vehemently protesting any type of therapy, or 'healing', for that matter, so I can't promise that any of this will be quick-"

"That's okay," he said quickly, cutting me off with a smile. "You take _all_ the time you need, baby…as _long_ as you want. We'll get through this together," he assured me.

I nodded and took another bite of my sandwich, loving the refreshing, cool taste of it. I smiled, knowing that Edward made it for me. Marie was right; he _is_ bloody romantic.

What he said next took the smile right off my face, though.

"You have therapy after you're finished with your lunch, sweetheart. Carlisle has an evening shift at the hospital, so he's going to leave as soon as he's done taking care of you. Looks like you two have a lot to talk about…" he trailed off suggestively.

I swallowed my bite of sandwich and looked at him incredulously. "_Why_ is it always like this?" I asked a bit forcefully.

He furrowed his brow at my sudden mood change. "Like what?" he asked, perplexed.

"Why is it, that _every_ single time I'm here, it's time for another damn therapy session. It's like that's all I'm around for anymore!" I said, getting upset at the unfairness of it all.

Okay so, I'm not actually aware, so it's not like I miss Edward, or anything, but at the same time…damn it, I would like to do something other than therapy. I mean, can't I be aware long enough to go on a fucking date with my boyfriend? Is that too much to ask?

**Yes** Marie replied bluntly.

_Why?_

**He's _mine_** Isabella reminded me.

**How the fuck are we supposed to get to know the guy we love, if we don't have any motherfuckin time with him, Bell? _You_ already know him. You've had your time with him. He's mine too and it's my turn, goddamn it** Marie reasoned.

**No, he's miiine…** Isabella whined.

Edward shrugged, grimacing at the truth in my statement. "I don't know, sweetheart…"

I sighed, knowing that there was nothing I could do about my awareness habits. Marie had a point, and besides, it was out of my hands for now.

**Damn right I have a point, doll. It's 'cause I'm fuckin smart** she remarked cheekily.

I stood from the table, feeling pretty damn full all of a sudden. "Well, we might as well get this over with…" I grumbled under my breath.

**Noooo…** Isabella whined.

_Be quiet._

**You be quiet** she mocked.

I rolled my eyes just as Edward pulled me in for a hug. "I love you so much, you know that, sweetheart? You're so strong, Bella. So beautiful…" he murmured and placed a cool kiss on my neck.

I nodded. "I love you too, honey…so much," I said before I turned my head fractionally to the side and kissed his strong, defined jaw.

_Sexy._

"Mine," he whispered in my ear.

"Yes, Edward…I'm your's," I confirmed softly.

He smiled and nodded in agreement, then enveloped my hand in his own and walked with me up to the second floor, where Carlisle's study was in this ridiculously large mansion.

CPOV

I heard Bella's discussion with my son at the dining room table, and the subject of her multiplicity had me very intrigued. The human mind is very fascinating, and our Bella was proving that fact just by merely existing. Her mind shields certain vampiric abilities, and I have no doubt that it goes along with her ability to shield herself from unpleasant things by disassociating the way that she does. Her mind has split and healed, only to be split again. It is capable of extraordinary things, in terms of survival. I simply cannot wait to begin today's therapy session.

Just then, Bella strolled into my study, with my son close behind, escorting her to her seat, as usual.

I smiled. He's always such a gentleman.

I caught a small smile playing on his lips at my mental compliment, then voiced out loud, "Hello Bella, dear. How are you?"

"I'm fine," came her shy reply.

I nodded. "I was wondering about the Prozac medication? You haven't been on it long enough to really feel the effects, but I wanted to make sure you weren't having any negative reactions to it."

She shrugged. "If I ever feel weird, I'll let you know," she assured me.

I smiled.

_So sweet. So cooperative. So unlike the other two…_

Edward chuckled lightly at my thoughts, then kissed Bella's forehead, assuring her that he'd be right outside the door. As usual.

I tried my best to ignore the lover's exchange, and readied my leather journal for this particular session. I felt my excitement growing at the prospect of all the new information that Bella might offer up today.

She was a talker. She loved to talk in these sessions that we had together, and I loved that about her. It was like she treated me as though I was an old girlfriend, and the second that the door clicks shut behind her, she pours her heart out to me, eager to get everything out of her system, and I am more than willing to offer a friendly ear and some sound advice.

I smiled warmly at the broken girl across my desk, encouraging her to loosen her tongue and talk to me.

"You're very fascinating, Bella…" I trailed off in compliment.

She raised her eyebrows in question, then quickly nodded in understanding. "You heard…" she mumbled.

I leaned forward then, placing my elbows on the desk. I didn't want to seem _too_ eager, though, so I refrained from grinning, and replied, "Yes, I did. Would you like to elaborate things for me…?" I asked in a gentle tone, successfully concealing my enthusiasm on the subject.

She nodded. "Sure. But you know how I roll, Carlisle…once I talk, I don't stop, so you're going to have to stop me if I go over our allotted time. I don't want you to be late for your shift at the hospital," she reasoned.

I nodded. "Of course, and thank you for taking my plans into consideration, sweetheart, but you know that you are a top priority for me, Bella. You come first, not the sickly people of Forks. You are my daughter, and they can wait. So, by all means, talk freely, my dear…" I trailed off encouragingly.

She nodded and sighed, curling her legs up under her, obviously trying to get comfortable for the upcoming session.

"Well…at the age of seven, I had advanced from a split-self to a multiple personality, Carlisle. I had been fragmented, split into different compartments to hold all my pain and anger. With all it's creativity, my mind found a way to save me. But what was survival for me as a child, is proving to not be a functional way of life for me as an adult," she pointed out.

I nodded, putting my pen to the blank page of my journal.

_Keep talking._

"After all these years, it doesn't surprise me that Isabella was the one to come back. She was always the most dominant one. But even though she expected it to be just the two of us again, just like old times, it's not, because now Marie is here. Marie is still brand new and was created in Isabella's absence, so now I am dealing with the same things I had to learn to cope with ten years ago. Multiple voices in my head, multiple views and opinions on things…it always causes a conflict of some sort; whether it's what TV show to watch, or what to wear that day, there's always a fucking argument going on in my head. It's a nuisance, but also a comfort in some ways, in the sense that it is familiar. I've dealt with it before, and I can deal with it again."

"Well, I'm glad you have the confidence that your previous experience has given you on dealing with this," I commented.

She nodded, and seemed to think about something for a minute before she spoke again. "Putting experiences into words like I've done these last few sessions puts structure, sequence, and a kind of rational overview to events that were not _at all_ that way. How can I adequately describe terror, Carlisle? How can I put into words what some of these events were like for my internal self?" she asked softly, conflicted.

I knew that these question were rhetorical, so I stayed silent, as I could see that she was currently lost in thought.

"I talk as though there was a cohesive, sane thread running through my existence, when there wasn't. It was both external, and internal chaos. Even as I tell you my stories, I realize that I am telling you as my 'Bella personality' remembers it. Isabella would tell you a completely different story. Her tale would be one of absolute rage at being locked up and hurt. She would say how she hated everyone by the time she began school, trusting no one, stealing pencils and milk money from other students' desks. She would stand defiantly in front of the principal and deny that she stole the teacher's watch at recess."

"She was the designated 'guard personality', I guess you could say…she was the one who had an internal radar for danger. She could read every gesture, and every twitch of an eyebrow on Jim. She ran outside to the trees, or hid in the garage at the merest hint of Jim's rising anger. Isabella was crafty, clever, and completely self-serving. She loved me, but at the same time, she would only save me because we shared the same body," she explained.

"I have a love and attachment to many people, while Isabella loves no one. Edward and Granny are the only people who have ever found a way into her guarded heart. She didn't care about frivolous things, like relationships, for she had a job to do: survival. She learned it early and she is very skilled in different tactics. Cheat. Steal. Lie. Manipulate. Be cute. Smile. She's a human coyote who learned to survive where other life forms would wither away."

"In her anger, Isabella could escalate the abuse from Jim. A deliberate sassy walk, an ever so quiet mutter of defiant words, a stomp of her foot, a deliberate smashing of a plate. It didn't happen often, because survival was her number one priority, but she did it enough…just enough to convey an 'I hate you back' to Dad."

I smiled at her encouragingly, not wanting to interrupt, and realizing that we were 'on a roll' now, as Bella would put it. I would only speak up if I had an important question to ask. But as for now, I write…

"I've been telling you things as though I remember a time when she was not there. But, I really don't. From my earliest memories, I shared a life with Isabella. She was my playmate, my friend, my enemy, my protector - as I was hers," she admitted quietly.

"Control slid with fluid ease back and forth between us. I imagine that Siamese twins learn the same sort of interactive relationship. There were agreements and arguments on who got 'body time'. This sounds vastly complex, I know, but compared to my outside world of unexpected and horrific violence, this was not a stress to me. It was a comfort…_Isabella_ was a comfort. I got secret satisfaction at her rage. She always did what I was too terrified to do. She was aggressive, while I was sweet," she informed me with a small smile.

She sighed then, switching positions and sitting Indian style in the high-back leather chair. "Isabella had two big passions: eating popsicles and playing hopscotch. From my earliest memories, I can see her - us - jumping on one foot. She jumped on all the designs of our huge living room carpet. She hopped upstairs and downstairs. She hopped in the basement. I think that the hopping might have served as some sort of a release of tension; I don't know. I would get so tired, and Isabella would still be hopping, and hopping…just fucking hopping away."

"Isabella was a more twitchy, nervous person than I was. Dad would slap us for her various grimaces and rhythmic twitches. We both had our nervous habits, though. I was the hair chewer, and Isabella was the hopper. I would gnaw endlessly on the ends of my long braids. When they finally dried, the ends would be all stiff. My teachers would yank them out of my mouth, saying that it was a disgusting habit, but it wasn't…it was a calming habit. I imagined that there was juice in my braids, just as there was in my thumb. We both had an addiction to our thumb, but while I was pretty much content to go without pacifiers after a year of not having access to them, Isabella still had a wicked craving for them. We would pass by a baby in a stroller, or a kid at the park, and she would snatch the binky right out of their mouth, and stick it in her own."

She subtly shook her head and continued on. "I thought it was really horrible that Isabella liked the color pink. We had a pink dress that I would only let her wear on Thursdays. That was pink day. She also liked a silver dog pin that she had stolen and kept insisting that we wear, making me nervous that the police would find out. Isabella didn't care about things like jail. She would jay-walk across a busy street all by herself. I was the kind who would hold Mom's hand and wait at the corner for a green light."

"She was a lot bolder than I was, speaking her mind more than I did. People liked her, even though she didn't really care if they did, or not. She hated them all, while they adored her. I always cared about whether people liked me, though. I desperately wanted to be loved. Isabella was louder and funnier, with an irresistible sense of humor. She said things at school that made everyone laugh. It embarrassed me when she caused my classmates to turn and look at us, but she liked the attention. Sometimes, she would say or do something on purpose to humiliate, or draw attention me, because, as you know, I blush really easily. It was weird, though…because Isabella rarely ever blushed. She took delight in my flaming pink cheeks, and teased me about it a lot."

"Isabella was far more calculating. She liked the attention that she got from being cute. Even in kindergarten, she knew how to hug people, or touch their hands in a way that would have them be warm back. I was never as daring, except maybe once or twice with a teacher. I shrank away from touching, always afraid that the contact would mean pain."

"Isabella loved to decorate our school projects with drawings and doodles. She took pens and drew flowers around the burn marks on our legs. She would color a clown face on a big black-and-blue bruise on our thigh, or some other hidden body area. She stole a pink marker and colored our toenails with it. She loved cosmetics. Every chance she had, she put them on. Halloween was always her favorite holiday, since she could wear lots of makeup. She always wanted to be a princess or a lady, creating the image with tissues stuffed in one of Mom's old dresses to make it look like we had boobs. I always wanted to go in a pirate outfit, or a ghost costume. We used to fight about this a lot, but she _always_ got her way, so every year, for five freakin years, we'd wobble around the neighborhood in high-heeled shoes, going door to door trick-or-treating."

I chuckled at her statement, knowing how much Bella hated high-heels, and it earned me a small smile from her. She probably knew what I was thinking, but I didn't comment on it, not wanting to interrupt her.

She began running her fingers through her long hair as she spoke more about her past. "I always wanted to have a long neck, like Audrey Hepburn, because I once heard Daddy say how he loved her long neck…it was graceful, and delicate. I wanted him to see _me_ in that way, for some reason. Isabella always wanted big lips. She would deliberately push ours out into a full, pouty look. She took kool-aid and stained our lips red. She took the watercolor brush and painted on red lips, telling me not to lick the pretty color off. I remember in third grade, she swished the thick red poster paint and colored us a deep crimson color for our lips. I got in trouble for that. I was also punished for her habit of eating the sticky white paste at school."

"She loved to play dress-up games, probably adding to our dissociative abilities. She'd smuggle clothes out of Bobby's closet, or use Mom and Dad's clothes to come up with hilarious outfits, where we would always be someone else. She could invent great escapist stories as we pranced around in front of the bathroom mirror."

"Any movies, books, fairy tales, or television shows we saw became fuel for our imaginative play. We invented and reinvented ourselves. In the end of our pretend dramas, I always found love, and Isabella found adventure and excitement far from the confines of the basement."

She squinted her eyes in thought then, and bit her lip. "It surprises me that I am the one who survived as the stronger self, and not Isabella. She was angrier, more extroverted, more manipulative, the headstrong, impulsive one, prone to dominating me and constantly in communication with the other personalities. They showed up when I was seven, and I hardly knew them. I almost never talked to them. Isabella wouldn't allow it. As I'm sure you already know, she has a very possessive nature, and according to her, I was _her_ friend, not _theirs_, so there was no need for me to associate myself with them. Isabella placed herself as the coordinator of things, and what I knew about them is just mostly what she told me. I filled in the lapse spaces of memory with what my friends and Isabella told me I did. It was two whole years _after_ I had integrated with the other selves, that I recovered the full extent of the memories of what they did and who they were," she revealed.

_Fascinating._

"When I was in the state mental hospital, I was put through constant and extensive therapy. And it worked…sort of. Isabella resisted treatment at every turn, much like she's doing now. She fought tooth and nail with the doctors, nurses and orderlies. But after eight months, when my mind was silent, and everyone was gone…all except for one, the hospital released me into my mother's partial custody. Isabella eventually disappeared as well, shortly after I was discharged, but, apparently, she never _really_ went away. Not really," she assured me.

"Do you remember your awareness habits back then, Bella? How often did you dissociate?" I asked curiously.

She subtly shook her head. "I certainly wasn't dissociating all the time, because then I would have been rendered non-functional. Stress, pain, terror, and isolation, were some of the things that made me shift into my other selves. I was very tiny when I began filling in the blank spaces, and inconsistencies. Not being able to account for minutes or hours at a time, finding myself in different clothes or locations, was just an accepted part of my life. I became very adept at scanning the scene and putting together what the other self had just done or said, and I'm an expert at it now," she explained.

I nodded, so she continued on.

_Yes…keep talking._

"I would feel bewildered at moments, coming back into awareness after a time lapse, and was always the one who was left picking up the loose threads of my life. Isabella and the others simply existed and acted out their own little roles, while I was left to explain to people or apologize for what my body had done while I was not there. I was very young when I figured out that no one believed me when I said that it was Isabella, or Joey, or Sunshine that had done things. They laughed at me. I learned to simply apologize.  
I would say, "I'm sorry, I don't know why I did that."  
I knew inside that it hadn't been me, but it was easier to look at a teacher or a school friend with my big doe eyes, and just say, "I'm sorry." I was forgiven for a multitude of sins because a part of me…the 'Bella personality', I guess you could say, was contrite and gentle and cute."

"I see…" I trailed off.

"My behavior was erratic because my many selves didn't connect with each other. Because of the continual social confusion, we all agreed to try to cooperate. Even though Isabella had bestowed herself as 'coordinator', I was the one who seemed to constantly be trying to organize the others. We all learned very early on to stick by 'The Code'."

"The code?"

She nodded. "Mm-hmm, when I was very young, about six years old, I learned about The Boy Scout Code of Honor from Timmy, a boy who lived down the street and played with Bobby a lot. He had patches and badges, and I was enthralled with the idea of having a code of honor. So, when chaos began to ensue in my split mind, I made Isabella talk to the other selves; we made some rules, such as they had to call themselves Bella in public. They weren't allowed to hit or bite, even when they were angry. Sunshine wasn't allowed to suck her thumb in public and Camille wasn't allowed to be blind in the street. The list was long. Isabella was the code keeper," she explained.

_Intriguing…_

"Isabella and I were definitely the two main personalities. There was always a dialogue in my head, from my earliest memories. We would discuss taking turns. She liked numbers, so I would let her do all the math in school. My mind was more open when I was younger, and I could choose to be aware when I wanted to be. I'm not sure why it's not like that now. Most of the time, when Isabella was using our body, it was as if I were the distant observer, watching as though a gauze curtain had been dropped over me. I would shrink tinier and tinier. I would go away…so far away, and it was through the shimmer of blurry white gauze that I would see and hear what was going on, but I would not participate in it. But then, sometimes I would disappear. Just be gone…like I do now. I would cease to exist for a period of time."

_Interesting…_

"Can you describe for me what dissociating was like for you?"

She nodded. "Yeah. It's like…I don't know, maybe you've been driving a car. And you've been stopping and starting and turning, yet five miles down the road, you realize that you don't remember anything you've just done. The mind went elsewhere and you went on auto-pilot. Dissociating is like that," she explained simply.

I nodded in understanding. "That makes sense," I commented.

She sighed, absently twirling a strand of hair in between her thin fingers. "There was a comfort in the basement to have another voice, a playmate. Isabella began as a friend. I liked her when we were little, even admiring her spunk and anger. There was also a satisfying disbursement of emotional and creative energy at dealing with the others. None of it was a conscious choice; it was just a way of organizing the chaos and horror. At the time, it was an insane way to survive an insane father. It was putting structure to my inner world, which held no safety in my outer world," she explained.

"It is only now that I am more experienced, and less scatter-brained, that I can look back at my mind before, when I was a child, and try to communicate what it was like to be split into many different selves. It was constant chaos, Carlisle. It was continual non-equilibrium. It was like being caught in an avalanche of snow and rocks, where the turning and churning never stops. It was a life with no grounding, no soft center, and no inner quiet. For three years, my life had the feel of a carnival room with crazy mirrors. Everywhere there were distortions, lack of orientation, and an unrelenting sense of anxiety. But whatever my inner distortions were, they were nothing, absolutely _nothing_, compared to the abuse that created them," she said with conviction.

"No matter how may times I try to describe it, there are no adequate words for what it was like to lie in my canopy bed at night and wonder if this was the night that Daddy would come in my room and plunge the purity knife into me. Stepping out of bed in the morning, feeling the pain as I moved my battered body, I'd wonder if this was the day that my eyes would get poked out. I'd check my room and closet, feeling the urgent need to keep it memorized for the time that he finally blinded me. I had to deal with the endless stress of survival; the hunger, the bone-chilling cold of the basement in winter, and the thirst in the summer. My eyes had to stay alert and see the oncoming danger at all times. My small hands had to always be careful not to spill, and my bare feet could never be noisy or bump into things. My ears always strained to listen to every speck of sound in the big, creepy house. I resolved my death. I drifted away from the terror."

"I've learned that multiplicity is a way of numbing what is more horror than the mind can deal with. I know a lot about my disorder, Carlisle, and that's why I'm doubtful that you and your therapy can help me. I am so educated on the subject, and I've already been through different recovery programs, yet I am still plagued with this problem," she stressed.

I nodded in understanding, then offered, "We have to try, Bella. For your own good, and for your health…we must try."

She furrowed her brow and nodded in defeat. "Alright, well…like I said, I know all about multiplicity, and I know that it's a way of organizing the brain's constant mixed messages. For example, I was Mommy's Sunshine and she cherished me. I was Daddy's evil dirty Kike, meant to only be tortured and killed, for Jews were meant to die. I was good. I was bad. I was pretty. I was ugly. I was isolated for endless hours…and I endured unrelenting physical pain. It turns the mind into a mess of vibrant disarray. I've also learned that dissociation is a form of self-abuse, when someone puts their feelings and actions out of the realm of conscious choice," she informed me.

"Sounds like you've read some medical books…" I hinted.

She nodded and admitted, "I have."

"That's good though, Bella…it's very helpful that you are so well-informed about your disorder," I told her.

She nodded and sighed, then continued on. "Isabella learned to like certain kinds of pain. A fist to her jaw eventually brought a smile to her face. She learned to delight in the metallic taste of a bloody lip or nose. There was a time, when Jim took me to the big echoing room for a purity session. He had punched me, knocking out a loose baby tooth and giving me a bloody lip. He laughed while I cried. But soon, my sobs turned into Isabella's maniacal giggles, pitched to match his own. She began laughing right along with him, licking at the trailing blood on her chin. She stared up at him defiantly, and laughed louder as his laughter began to die down. Jim was not pleased, to say the least. I remember when she took a needle and thread, when I was nine, and she sewed black cross-stitched X's on the soles of our feet. I pulled them out later with a pair of tweezers. When I was ten, and Mom took me to get my very first training bra, Isabella was very upset. Our body was growing up, but she wasn't. She stuck sewing needles in our nipples and wove pink thread around them, protesting the budding mounds on our chest," she informed me.

"Wow…that's some protest," I said in disbelief.

"Yes. It was fucking ridiculous," she said with a slight roll of her eyes.

"I agree."

"Anyway…I imagine that schizophrenia isn't too far removed from dissociation, when one reorganizes their reality to reach some new way of finding a sense of safety. There's a certain safety in multiplicity. There's emotional satisfaction in it, too. I was horrified to watch Isabella steal or Joey hit people, but there was pleasure, too, at seeing them being brave enough to do what I never could. It was like going to the movie theatre and watching the Terminator level a room full of bad guys. There was so much pain inside, that I let the pain find expression in the actions of my others, because it was inconsistent with what I could accept doing as myself. I accepted public blame though, but I never felt guilt for what my others did."

"At the age of seven, my multiplicity wasn't that upsetting to me, but in the span of three years, I grew older, and frequently became very upset and humiliated by my other selves. Keeping friends, and interrelating with people when my behavior was so unpredictable, was a stress that made me retreat from any real social life. I functioned, but it is only now that I am finding some form of predictability in my life, that I know the enormous stress multiplicity causes."

I nodded, absorbing her words and writing every single one down.

"What is merely unacceptable behavior for a child, such as having temper tantrums and acting out, is really humiliating to have to deal with as an adult, Carlisle. I know that Isabella throws fits. I know that she sucks her thumb and enjoys her new binkies. I don't like it. Adults are expected to have control over their impulses and feelings, but I don't. Marie is blunt and instinctual while Isabella is selfish and possessive. These traits won't allow me to act rationally a lot of the time, and it drives me crazy. Even when I was small, I tried to find a way to control my inner group - hence, The Code."

"Hmm…would you like to know about them, Carlisle? The others?" she asked then.

I nodded, hoping that I didn't look overly enthusiastic at hearing her trauma. "Yes, Bella, please…share whatever you're comfortable with sharing," I told her with yet another encouraging smile.

She nodded. "Alright, well…I remember that Joey was the worst offender at breaking The Code. It seemed that there was always trouble when Joey came out. Marie reminds me a lot of him. I couldn't talk to him like Isabella could, though. I was always trying to piece the story together later. Joey would always fight, while Isabella cheered him on. In second grade, he jumped on the back of the class bully; a boy named Jed, who tripped smaller kids as they went to their desks, and squished sandwiches. Joey pummeled him with our fists, giving him a bloody nose and a black eye."

_Yes, that sounds like Marie._

"When he was out, he wanted to be a boy, and even told my teacher, after one fight, that he was Joey, _not_ Bella, and then he went and spit on her. Later, when I was in detention after school, I felt deeply ashamed for what he did and it irked me that I had to listen to the teacher lecture me about hitting, spitting, and even lying about who I was.  
"Bella, you make no sense at all. One minute, you can be sweet and cooperative. The next, you're an aggressive, angry child. Your school work is unpredictable, too. You turn in beautiful, neat papers one day, and scribbled, messy ones the next. You must try harder. What is wrong with you? Are you unhappy?" she nagged at me.  
"No, I'm fine. I'll try to be better," I would say flatly in a monotone voice, while staring distractedly at the ceiling above me.  
Joey liked sports of all kinds. He liked messy things; clay, mud, spitballs. He rejected all things feminine. He was obsessed with the idea of being hungry. He sometimes stole food out of other kids' lunchboxes, since Dad sometimes sent us to school with too little. After school, he picked through the trash barrels when no one was looking, and smuggled half-eaten apples or thrown-away sandwiches into our lunchbox. He stashed food in every crevice of our bedroom that he could find. Ants became a problem in our room after he showed up. It was especially bad when he put jelly sandwiches under our shoes or underwear. I remember being angry at Joey when I had to shake ants off my panties before putting them on in the morning."

"Joey was a very oral person. Not only did he like food to the point of obsession, but he was probably the world's best bubble gum blower. He was passionate about bubble gum. He picked it up off sidewalks, out of trash cans, stole it, and coerced our friends out of it. He could chew three pieces at a time, sometimes four. He kept stashes of chewed, hardened bubble gum behind the headboard of our canopy bed, and under our desk at school. It took only a little while to get it soft again. He snuck a stack of chewed gum in the basement, so when we had our interminable hours down there, he could practice for hours on end. I didn't like it because my jaws got sore and Joey didn't care that the huge bubbles popped and got stuck in my eyelashes and eyebrows."

"Joey was proud of being Jewish. When he looked in the mirror, he saw the strong Jewish face of our real father, Charlie. He'd seen a picture of him on Granny Hadassah's bedroom wall. He wanted to be very tall and wear a mustache under his nose, as well. No one but Granny ever talked about Jews. Joey knew very little, but what information he _could_ find out, he clung to. He would steal Bobby's baseball cap and use it in the most peculiar way. Alone in our room, when I would unbraid my hair, Joey would come out and put a twisted tendril of hair in front of his ears, then tuck the rest of the hair up under the cap."

"One holiday, a big box came from Germany. One of Dad's relatives had sent it, and in the bottom of the box, was a beautiful candle with little wax chickens and roses on it. Joey stole the candle and hid it in our room. On Hanukkah, Joey lit it and put on the beanie cap and draped a little shawl, that he'd made from a strip of an old sheet, over his shoulders. He made up his own little prayers and chants in jibberish and singsong words. He didn't even know what Jewish meant, but in his heart, he was a damn good Jew."

"He was also a very angry Jew. He hated Daddy. He was mad at Mom for never, ever talking about our real Jewish father. When he grew up, he was going to be a rabbi with a beard and chant wonderful things in a temple."

"He coveted Bobby's BB gun. Joey liked the idea of revenge. He played dark, violent death games with the little clay figures he made. He took great delight in helping Bobby put a cherry bomb in an anthill and blowing it to smithereens. Sophie was angry. She got upset when Joey wanted to kill things."

"Sophie was Jewish, too. She was born old…came into existence that way. I think that she represented my Grandmother, and that my mind created her because I missed my Granny so much at times. From my earliest memories, she was an old woman. She was a nurturing self…a gentle, kind care-giver. She loved cooking and tea parties. She loved making food look beautiful on plates, like a lovely picture. She enjoyed preparing food for Joey, who was always hungry."

"She adored plants. She took care of daffodil bulbs in the backyard and checked them everyday to see how high they had grown. She planted vegetables in secret garden plots behind the orange trees. One summer, when I was nine, she grew and ate a whole patch of her own carrots, which she watered with a heavy sprinkling can. Sophie grew sweet potatoes held up with toothpicks in glass Skippy peanut butter jars. She enjoyed seeing the stems trail down to the floor and search for the light. She always identified with those potato plants…how the leaves always knew where the window was. Sophie always knew where the window was, too. She was always looking out of it, always waiting for something…what, I don't know."

"She was the melancholy self. Death was a constant theme for Sophie. She thought about it, worried about it, imagined it. She was into global grieving. I remember that she cut out pictures of starving Jews behind barbed-wire fences from a LIFE magazine. She kept the pictures in the bottom drawer of our dresser, and on regular occasions, she would take the pictures out and rock back and forth, crying, and studying the bony faces, just trying to understand the reason behind all the suffering."

"Every animal that Daddy killed was a trauma for Sophie. After the dead pets were buried in the backyard, Sophie would go and dig them up at regular intervals, to see what stage of decomposition they were in. When she dug up King with a shovel a few months after he was buried, and found that he no longer had his eyes, she covered him back up and rocked back and forth on the mound of dirt and mourned. Mourning to Sophie was sort of a Hopi Indian chant we'd seen on a movie once. It was just the right sort of sound for grief."

"She dug Cocoa back up and put her in a shoe box. Sophie didn't care that Cocoa's body was all squished from Jim's car, or that her stomach wasn't even there anymore. Sophie wrapped the kitten in a soft cloth and would bring her out from under the bed and rock and pet the soft fur. I was the one who had to throw the cat away; Sophie would have just kept petting and petting."

"She put our favorite white hamster that Dad killed in our blue lunchbox, wrapped in a Kleenex. Sophie took the hamster out of the lunchbox everyday after school and held the stiff little creature in her hand and softly stroked it with her index finger. It began to stink in the lunchbox and it made my sandwiches taste odd. I dumped it in the trash can at school. Isabella said that Sophie was all upset about it."

"She picked dead things off the sidewalk to carry around; beetles, spiders, and long worms that had drowned in a heavy rain. She would put the worms in my coat pocket and I always jumped at the cold, slimy feel when I reached into the pocket because I wouldn't see Sophie do it. Her obsession with dead things really made me angry sometimes. Joey would stomp on worms and snails, Sophie would pick them up, I would step over them, and Isabella would hop around them in circles."

"Camille was very sweet and quiet. Some of my most humiliating moments have been when it was Camille's turn to have the body. It was next to impossible to explain to anyone why I was seen running into things, or feeling my way through the sightless world of Camille.  
"I was playing a game," I lied to whoever confronted me with my unusual behavior.  
"You are the strangest child," said one teacher. "You are like quicksilver the way you change constantly. I don't understand you at all."

"Camille was the perfect victim; docile and apathetic to the world. More than anything, she wanted to be loved. She thought that if she didn't cry or protest when we were being hurt, that maybe, just maybe, we would be loved. Camille loved Mommy and Daddy - and nearly everybody. She was wonderfully, heroically blind. This personality made Bobby very angry.  
"Stop pretending you can't see," he demanded. "You're acting really stupid."

"Camille organized our drawers and room to function in her blackened world. She knew the number of steps from one room to another, and that there were eighteen steps down the back stairway. She was lovely and frail, with tiny little wrists and a long neck. Camille would count the steps into Mom and Dad's room when they weren't around and go in Mom's closet and sniff the perfume she always wore. She would feel in Mom's drawers for her folded sweaters and hold the cashmere to her face and bury her nose in the soft armpits to get the smell of Mom. She yearned for softness. She liked the feel of Mom's real silk blouses. There had been nothing soft in our room since Pooh Bear was killed. She would count the precise steps to the bathroom and pat herself gently with Mom's bath powder, feeling the soft powder puff against her skin."

"Camille would go to Daddy's closet and feel all the nubby jackets, the tweeds and woven wools, and just the smell of the wonderful aroma of him. She even liked the stench of his weekend socks thrown in the back of the closet. She stood in the darkened closet of the very person who had stabbed her eyes out and sniffed the body smells of the father that she wished would hold her. For a while, Jim smoked a pipe, and Camille sniffed the tobaccos in the can and sucked on the bitter pipe end. She liked the idea that what was in his mouth, was now in hers."

"There was no anger in Camille, no survival drive. She was perfectly content to be blind or to die. It made no difference to her. She didn't deal with concepts of fair or right and wrong. Life simply was as it was."

"She liked strong flavors in her mouth. She sucked bay leaves and cloves from the kitchen cupboard, and enjoyed cut lemons. She felt her way outside and sucked the drops of nectar out of the honeysuckle flowers, standing still so the bees that we were allergic to wouldn't sting her, and breathed in the fragrance of the flowers through her nose in long, slow breaths. Camille found pleasure in the midst of her blackness."

"Sunshine was six, while Isabella was five. No matter how old I got, those two stayed the same age, and remained very immature. This wasn't too big a problem when I was younger, but now, as an adult, it's complicated. I don't like thinking that I'm capable of acting like a five-year old."

"They wanted bears…soft, fuzzy ones that they could cuddle. Much like Isabella, Sunshine spoke in a high-pitched little kid voice, but unlike Isabella, she actually liked the dark basement. Sometimes, she would go down there and sit in the blackness and be very small, nearly invisible."

"Sunshine was a nest builder, with blankets and pillows and shiny trinkets. She was attracted to sparkles, like a blue jay. She decorated her tiny arms with glittery bracelets and kept stashes of fake diamond jewelry, hiding them in the pillow slips. She had a terrible habit of biting herself and sucking on the skin, leaving big purple marks. I used to get angry because it was hard enough in school to hide Jim's abuse, let alone Sunshine's."

"Sunshine was like one of those cats that didn't get nursed long enough. She always wanted to suck things. She kept asking Daddy if she could suck on his nipples for a while. She was trusting and innocent and never saw danger."

"Baby Bell wasn't even a real personality. She was a very tiny toddler who only longed and felt, but barely existed. She wet herself and cried and curled up in a little ball. Sometimes she needed to come out and get in a crawling position and rock back and forth, just trying to stop the pain with a rhythm. She'd lie with her chest on the bed and her legs drawn up under her and her rear in the air, like a stink bug on alert, and rock her bottom back and forth. She'd rock until she became so small, she was invisible. She'd rock until she didn't see the blood anymore."

"The personality who means the least to me is Cassandra. I don't know when she came into being, or why. She was rarely around when I was a child, and mostly made her appearances after Jim was out of my life. I didn't like her. She was condescending to the rest of us and rather bossy. More than once, Isabella stepped up and kept her in line."

"Cassandra was also an outgoing, loved, and funny person. She was German, and so very proud of having parents who were successful; a business Mommy and an artist Daddy. She did have some good qualities. She had a zest for living; she actually _liked_ life. She loved the cultural things we learned in school, classical music, and beautiful paintings. Her favorite memory was when we went on a field trip at school to an art museum."

"Keeping Cassandra from taking off on an adventure was always a problem. She loved to travel and see new things, meet new people. The city bus and her became quick friends. She loved public transportation - it took her anywhere she wanted to go. She was the flamboyant, people-loving cultured one. She knew the names of some fine wines, and could tell exactly what spices flavored a new food. She craved new sensations, new sights, new sounds. Every room she entered, she made a new friend."

"She felt disdain for my limited child's world; always wanting it to be bigger, wanting more. Where I was hindered by my many fears and panics, she was a lighthearted, care-free soul. She dressed in bold, bright colors, and smoked Mom's cigarettes, and drank coffee out of Mom's coffee pot in the morning. She was fearless, for her childhood had been happy and secure. She talked endlessly about her family in Germany and the shopping trips she had shared with her mother in the city. She was in denial about our actual history. Her Daddy loved her…he would never hurt her."

I raised my eyebrows. "She smoked? But your childhood asthma…" I trailed off in concern.

She nodded. "Yeah, I got bronchitis twice because of her. And Joey couldn't stand her. He thought she was a great big phony, with all her interest in Van Gogh and Brie cheese with fresh garlic and pine nuts. She collected obscure bits of knowledge to sound intriguing to the grown-ups. She had a wealth of statistics, and if in doubt, she made them up. She was entertaining before she was accurate, the story always far more important than the reliability."

"Unfortunately, like Joey, Cassandra broke The Code a lot, feeling that she was above the system of rules for the 'little people' that she was stuck sharing a space with. She deeply complicated my life by introducing herself as Cassandra to people and giving our home phone number to strangers. Actual charity organizations would call and ask me if Cassandra was home and if she and a parent would like to help out with their fundraising, and strange kids that she had charmed on the playground would call to invite me over."

"Cassandra liked to help people and spread the cheer. There was the summer when I was eight, when Cassandra took over our body a lot, and decided to explore Christianity, despite Joey's constant objections. She got baptized four times in different churches, one of them being The Church of Christ, by immersion. The small congregation held a special reception for her after the service. Later, Isabella came out and asked the Pastor if he was going to fuck her. I pieced all of this together when the Pastor came to our house with a Bible and said that he would pray for my soul, for I was a wicked sinner. I rolled my eyes, and when he asked me if I was a virgin, my mom told him to leave the house. I begged Cassandra to stop her ridiculous escapades."

"Joey was furious at the baptisms since he was a devout Jew. He went into a synagogue once and, in talking to a rabbi, found out that he wasn't even a full Jew because our mother wasn't in the bloodline. He completely rejected this information, and dug the beanie hat out of a drawer, reverently setting it atop his head. Then, with a blue marker, he defiantly drew the Star of David all over his naked body. Standing in front of the mirror with blue stars everywhere, he could see his circumcised penis between his legs."

_Hmm…_

"There was about as much conflict between Cassandra and Joey, as there was between Isabella and me. Joey was always angry, while Cassandra remained cheerful and enthusiastic."

"Cassandra was terrible with money, always blowing my allowance on stupid crap. She thought that the Dollar Store was the best invention in the whole wide world. I learned not to accept more than ten bucks, or so, from my mom, to go out with friends, because Cassandra would go on a shopping spree. She was wonderfully generous though, giving every last dollar in her little princess purse to any beggar who approached her. Out playing on cold winter days, she would give her coat to kids who didn't look warm enough to her."

"One Thanksgiving, when Mom was expecting lots of guests for the holiday dinner, Cassandra boxed up the roasted twenty-pound turkey and put it in the little red wagon in the garage. She grabbed the black handle and kept up a determined stride, as she walked with it down the road to the shelter for abused women. She was the light-hearted giver, and I was left to face the consequences of leaving my Mom to serve barbeque hamburgers to all her guests, since it was too late to cook another turkey. Mom yelled at me and scolded that 'family comes first'. I was grounded for two weeks for embarrassing her in front of her coworkers like that. The whole ordeal only added strain to our relationship. Things had changed between us the first year we were away from Jim. She thought that I was odd, and she was very accurate in her assumption."

"As an adult, Marie is the personality who stresses my life the most with her stealing and attempted promiscuity. I feel ongoing, deep humiliation over her exploits. Sophie wandering through cemeteries, and Sunshine laying in the closet with mounds of blankets and stacks of glittery bracelets, is nothing compared to finding myself with a half-drunk man in some motel room that smells of old cigarettes and room freshener, with flashing lights blinking on and off past the filmy windows. I hate that more than anything else my other selves have ever done. There have been young boys, old stinky men, and guys with beer guts so big, they couldn't possibly have proper sex. All of them were unconscious from the brutal beating that Marie so lovingly bestowed upon them. Her favorite game is Seduce & Scream. She loves to make them think they are going to get lucky, only to beat the hell out of them for taking the bait, then she falsely accuses them all of being rapists, just to excuse her abhorrent actions. She's addicted to her game. She is obsessed with the idea of a man screaming for her. In pleasure, or in pain, it doesn't matter. She's a lot like Jim in that way; a scream will always get her to smile. Thanks to Charlie, she has a never-ending supply of mace, a pair of brass knuckles, and is a very skilled fighter. Those poor guys never knew what hit 'em."

"Marie likes speed. Everything has to be fast. Fast orgasms. Fast cars. Fast music with a strong beat. Roller coasters. Carnival rides. She's found that an adrenaline high can make the pain of the abandonment go away. Why she hasn't become a more hardcore drug abuser, I don't know. Maybe because my mind can alter reality without any chemicals…" she trailed off, then added, "Just after you guys left, Marie stole a big green car with the tail fins flaring in the back. Someone had stupidly left the keys shimmering on the floor mat. Marie sped down the freeway to Seattle, where the fair was happening, and she rode all the roller coasters until all of her money was gone. She returned the car in the dark, where she'd stolen it from, when she was done."

"Around Christmas time, she flirted herself into a job as a topless dancer a few towns over, but the job only lasted until the second night, when the owner asked for her proof of age."

"She went on a road trip with two friends from La Push down to Skid Row in Los Angeles just to see what it was like, and another time to Pershing Square to see the old Chinese man they'd heard about who had curling fingernails about a foot long. They found him, and shared a joint, just to see how he'd manage it with the long nails. Marie, like Isabella, is never short on ideas."

"We have similar friends, but also completely different sets, so that is extremely difficult to juggle. We usually don't like the same kind of people, ya know? Marie smoked in the bathroom between classes, and I never did that. I liked science and tried to be a good student…I absolutely loved the library. Marie just liked the football games and school assemblies."

"Did anybody notice your behavioral habits at school? You and Marie are quite different, Bella. I can't imagine someone not noticing the change…even if it's just your tone of voice that they noticed…"

She subtly shook her head. "My behavior swings did not go unnoticed, by any means. I knew that I was often the topic of conversation amongst my peers; I was a 'head case'. I confided in no one. Only Bobby and Mom ever knew about my other selves. They could tell which one was out. Bobby liked Joey a lot because he'd go outside and play baseball with him, and he really liked Isabella because she was very imaginative and always lots of fun. The secret of my many selves was as safe with Bobby as was the abuse. We lived in a world that just didn't make any sense."

"When Mom and I moved away, and Jim went to jail, we took Bobby with us until the state could find him a proper foster home, which was about six months later. Soon, we just stopped talking about my multiples. My shifting attitudes and behaviors were just a part of their view on who I was."

"The integration of my many selves into one whole person, when I was ten years old, was slightly upsetting to my Mom, because she saw how much I had changed. Turns out, she liked my more flamboyant aspects. In the incorporation, some characteristics of the others have become apart of me, others have become apart of Marie when she showed up in November. Isabella still remains the same," she explained.

I nodded. "And with all of your experiences, both past and present…is there anything in particular that is upsetting to you right now?" I asked curiously, my pen hovering over the page and eagerly awaiting her answer.

She nodded. "Yes, what deeply bothers me now, is how I was so willing to maintain a structure built on self-deception for so long. To other people, the situation seems illogical, and I know that there is _no way_ one body of a given sex and age, can house other selves of varying sexes and ages - and even claim to have different parents. But that's exactly what I did," she told me with a little shrug.

"And as far as the voices go…everyone is capable of internal dialogues, like when you're considering buying a car and you list the pros and cons, or when you have conflicting feelings about anything. So that part's not so crazy. My mental illness is that I honestly believed the others were real. That I still want Isabella and Marie to be real. Now, _that_ is fuckin crazy," she insisted with a nod.

I furrowed my brow, not liking that she was describing herself as 'crazy'.

"I made an inner comfort zone as a child, Carlisle…a set of characteristics and attributes that I labeled and identified as completely separate entities in order to deal with my ongoing trauma. So maybe _I_ am the expert escape artist, not Isabella…" she trailed off.

"Maybe," I commented.

She nodded, and squinted her eyes a bit in thought. "Yeah…I almost feel embarrassed at looking back at a decade of an elaborately maintained self-deception. My mental illness is not the multiple personality disorder…it's that I was willing to forego holding up my thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors to any extent that would allow me to examine myself, or who I really was as a person," she insisted.

I nodded. "You're a smart girl, Bella," I complimented.

She bit her lip, gazing at me thoughtfully then.

I gave her a small smile. "…what?"

She shrugged. "I dunno…it's difficult to explain this to you and expect you to believe that I could grow up, go to school, and be in a relationship, while maintaining all of this insanity, Carlisle. I want to write a book about it, but I'd feel like Edgar Allan Poe, taking a pen in my hand, and expecting anyone to find credibility in my account of events, when I am _clearly_ a very unreliable narrator."

"Writing a book about this could be quite therapeutic for you, Bella," I told her.

She nodded. "I love his quote, 'Believe me, though I am quite mad…'"

I nodded and hummed in agreement. "Mm-hmm…it's interesting."

She smiled. "It's awesome. And I can totally relate."

* * *

A/N:

Confused?

Bet you didn't see that one coming.

Are you like our poor Edward? Are you scared that some of the 'others' are gonna come back?

Aw...I had fun coming up with the little characters. Which one did you like the best?

And poor Bella...she has finally realized that she's only around for the therapy sessions.

Maybe that will change in the near-future, though? Ya think? Hmmm...

Leave me a review, because they are oh~so pretty to wake up too :)

xoxo


	48. Just Jealous

EPOV

"…I'm a Toy R Us kid, there's a million toys at Toys R Us that I can play with, I don't wanna grow up-"

"Isabella," I called, interrupting her sing-a-long with the commercial on TV.

She giggled and looked up at me from where she lay on the couch. "What?"

"No feet on the furniture, sweetheart," I reminded her.

She lifted her feet and brought her knees up to her chest, keeping a twirling finger in her long hair. "What about twinkle toes, Edward?"

I smirked and sat down on the cushion that her legs had occupied a second ago. "Those too, baby girl," I confirmed, then reached over and ran a tickling fingertip along the heel of her small foot.

She giggled, then straightened her legs out so they could lay across my lap. "No feet _or_ twinkle toes on the couch," she muttered the reminder to herself before she stuck a yellow pacifier in her mouth and turned her attention back to the flat screen TV on the wall.

We were in the living room and Isabella had been watching cartoons while alternating having that pacifier in and out of her mouth for the past twenty minutes. She had come around shortly after the end of my Bella's therapy session, saying that she had missed me. I just nodded and held her to my chest for one of my favorite hugs because I had missed her too.

"Oooooh, Edward I wanna fuckin go!" Marie said excitedly, stretching out her arm and pointing a small finger to the screen. She realized then that she was holding Isabella's pacifier, and grimaced at it before tossing it onto the coffee table. "Can we go? Can we go? _Please_, Edward, I wanna fuckin go. Let's go!" she practically demanded. She was so damn excited, she was practically vibrating with it.

I tore my eyes away from the huge grin splitting across her beautiful face to look at the TV and find out what she was talking about.

_Oh. Uhmm…_

The fair was coming to town this weekend.

"It's not happening for a few more days, sweetheart," I informed her.

She huffed and brought brack her outstretched hand to lay flat on her belly. "But I wanna go _now_…" she told me with a hint of a whine in her tone.

I nodded in understanding and started massaging her left foot. "I know baby, but it's only Wednesday and it's not set up and ready yet. The rides aren't even put together, honey…" I trailed off in explanation.

Her brow furrowed and her little hands tightened into fists right before that familiar agitated whine started in the back of her throat.

My 'stern face' fell into place immediately. "Marie…" I warned in a hard tone.

"Nooow…" she insisted, whining and ignoring the look on my face.

_Hmm…maybe my stern face doesn't work anymore. Well, damn._

I stopped the soothing movements of my hand on her foot. "We can go when it opens, Marie. Throwing a fit won't make that happen any sooner," I assured her.

She gritted her teeth. "But why the hell would they put that shit on the commercial if it wasn't even _open_ yet? Just to tease us? That's fuckin mean!" she proclaimed, crossing her arms over her chest and pursing her lips to add character to that adorable scowl on her face.

I chuckled. "Marie, they showed the commercial to let everyone know that the fair was coming to town, so that people could make plans to go there this weekend," I explained.

She pouted. "But fucking hell, Edward, it's not fair. I wanna go _now_…" she told me, her eyes watering.

I lightly caressed her bare thigh in a comforting gesture. "I know babe, and we'll go the day that it opens. I promise."

She ran one of her still tightly clenched fists over her watery right eye, then proceeded to fix me with a penetrating stare, one that I've learned she uses when she wants to know if you're lying or not. "You swear?" she pressed.

I nodded. "I swear."

"Edward?"

I smiled. "Yes?"

"We can go on the fairy wheel, huh?" Isabella asked me.

I furrowed my brow. "Ferris wheel?"

She shook her head and reiterated, "Fairy wheel."

I chuckled at the mispronounced word, but before I could say anything to correct her again, she continued on. "You know, it's all blinky with pretty lights and takes you high, high up in the big sky," she explained, extending her hands out in front of her so that they were reaching towards the ceiling. "It's a fairy wheel," she told me.

I grabbed her outstretched hands and brought them to my mouth for a kiss. After I planted a cool kiss to both sets of knuckles, I laid her hands back down on her flat belly and promised, "Yes, we can go on the fairy wheel, baby."

She beamed up at me and giggled. "Kay."

"Edward?"

I started trailing my cool fingertips along the length of her smooth leg. "Yes, baby?"

"I want my biiinky…" she informed me with a whine.

I leaned forward and reached for where it lay on the coffee table. Isabella held her hand out to me, so I set it in the middle of her upturned palm, and she wasted no time in stuffing that rubber nipple back in between her lips.

While she turned her attention back to the cartoon on TV, I continued my finger's light trail along her leg and started to think about what I could make for dinner. Carlisle was at the hospital, Esme was out in the garden and Jasper had left to go hunt. I knew that Alice wouldn't be interested in helping because she was upstairs in her room rearranging her closet. It was five in the afternoon, and I knew that my girl would be hungry in a little while. Dinner was scheduled to take place two hours from now, but my Bella had only eaten half of her sandwich for lunch, so I was guessing that my baby girl would start to get hungry earlier than 7pm this evening.

"Edward?" she mumbled around her pacifier.

"Hmm?" I hummed distractedly.

"I love you."

"I love you too, baby girl."

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

She sat up, then took her feet off my lap and set them down on the floor. "I wanna go play outside," she told me, apparently tired of the juvenile cartoon playing on the screen.

I nodded. "Hmm…are those itchy-hotts still bothering you, baby?" I asked, needing to know whether I needed to apply more medicine for her before she started running and bouncing around outside.

She blushed, then looked down and mumbled, "No…"

_Lie…_

I sighed. "Okay…are you sure?" I hedged.

She shrugged and stood up. "I wanna go play," she told me again, taking the pacifier out of her mouth and setting it down on the coffee table.

I stood as well and kissed her forehead. "Okay, but let me know if they start hurting you again, alright angel?"

She nodded, so I relented and let her go out to play in the backyard. I knew I should have insisted that she get another application of the external cream because she was obviously lying about the 'itchy-hotts', but I didn't want to push it. If it were truly bothering her, then she would tell me. Apparently, it's not _that_ much of a nuisance right now, because it's not interrupting her play time, so I'm relieved about that. Like I told my Bella before; she is healing beautifully, so I don't expect to have to place myself in the awkward position of Doctor Edward for too much longer…just at bedtime, and maybe once before, but that should be it.

Becoming annoyed with the Spongebob theme song, I turned the TV's channel to one that just played music constantly. I chose the soft rock channel for some back round noise, then went to accompany Isabella outside. She had left the back doors open, so I made sure to pull them shut behind me as I stepped out onto the patio. I watched Isabella roll and bounce the soccer ball around on the trampoline before I sat down on the ground beside Esme where she was currently working on her garden.

She smiled over at me. "Hello, Edward."

"Hello."

"How is she?" Esme inquired.

I looked back over to the girl in question.

Isabella had dropped the soccer ball over the edge of the trampoline, and was now jumping on it. "She's fine. Marie wants to go to the fair this weekend. I promised her that we would, but I need confirmation from Alice on the weather before I can make good on it. I know I should have thought about that before, but she was just so damn excited and I couldn't tell her no."

Esme smiled and nodded, her gaze going back to the flowers. "It should be fine. There's very rarely a sunny day here, you know that."

I nodded. "Yeah…I hope-" I was cut off by the ringing off my Bella's cell phone.

It was in Isabella's jean short's pocket at the moment, and she had abruptly stopped her jumping to look down at her clothes with a puzzled look on her face.

I smirked. "Excuse me…" I told Esme, standing from my spot on the ground.

"Of course," she agreed, carefully straightening out the petals on one of her flowers.

I walked over to where Isabella stood on the trampoline, and noticed that the phone had rung out three more times while I made my way over to my little girl. "Hey, angel-" I started but she cut me off.

"Edward, my panties are _makin noises_!" she told me, looking away from her shorts over to me, with wide chocolate eyes.

I chuckled. "No baby, that's Bella's phone," I informed her.

Her thin brow slightly furrowed. "Huh?" she muttered, perplexed.

I crooked my finger at her. "C'mere."

"Kay."

She bounced her way over to me, and when she was standing on the ledge, her hips level to my face, I reached into her right jean pocket and pulled the small blue phone out. I quickly looked at the caller ID, then pressed the TALK button before it could go over to voicemail on the seventh ring.

"Hello?" I greeted, pressing the phone to my ear.

Isabella sat down in front of me, and let her legs dangle over the side while she watched me talk on the phone.

"Edward?" Charlie asked.

I smiled at Isabella while internally rolling my eyes at her dumb father. "That's me."

"Where's Bella?"

"She's out."

"Why do you have her phone then? Shouldn't she take it with her when she goes out?" he asked.

"She forgot it, you know how she is. I could have her call you when she gets back in, or you could call her phone back and leave a message. I'll be sure to let her know that you called though," I told him, trying my best to remain polite.

"Edward?" Isabella piped up.

I quickly pressed my finger to my lips and kept a small smile on my face, indicating that she needed to be quiet. She smiled back and pressed her own small finger to her pink lips, mimicking me.

"Well, just let her know that there's a cook out going on down at La Push this weekend and she's invited to come along with me and Sue…"

_Nope._

I let his monotone voice fade into the back round as I covered the mouth piece and spoke quietly so that Charlie couldn't hear me.

"I love you, baby girl," I cooed softly to Isabella, and leaned forward to give her button nose a gentle Eskimo kiss.

She giggled and rubbed her warm little nose back against mine. "I love you too," she whispered.

I smiled and pulled back to give her nose a real kiss before I went back to the phone conversation. I held my finger up to my lips as a reminder to Isabella before I spoke, and she nodded, getting the message, then mimicked me again with her own finger.

"…and then that fair thing is happening and Jake wanted to know if she wanted to go-"

I cut him off right there. "I'll be sure she gets the message," I told him, knowing damn well that I would do no such thing.

I heard him sigh into the phone. "Alright well, I'll talk to you all later then," he relented, obviously getting the hint from my sudden rude tone that this conversation was over now.

"Alright, goodbye," I responded before hitting the END button.

"Edward?"

"Hmm?" I hummed in question as I slid my Bella's cell phone into my jean pocket.

I would be answering her phone when she's not around from now on. I would need to keep running interference for ridiculous invitations like the one she had just gotten. A cook out at La Push? Going to the fair with that mutt?

_I don't fucking think so._

"How come that phone don't make ringy noises?"

I furrowed my brow, looking back into my little girl's curious eyes. "What do you mean, angel?"

"It was making pretty noises, but it wasn't ringy noises," she explained in her child-like voice, always making sure to enunciate all of her T's.

I nodded. "Oh…yeah, it's set to a wind chime ring tone, sweetie pie. It makes those pretty noises instead of the ring-ring noise when someone is calling," I explained.

She nodded. "Edward?"

"Yes?"

"Who was on the phone callin?"

"Charlie."

"…who?" she asked, confused.

"Bella's dad."

She gazed at me skeptically and subtly shook her head. "That's not Daddy's name."

"Isabella, Jim is dead and he's not your daddy," I gently reminded her, fully aware of her confusion on this subject.

She sucked on her bottom lip and twirled a long strand of her hair for a few seconds before she spoke again.

"Edward?"

"Yes, angel?"

"Who Charlie?" she asked again, dropping the hand that had been playing in her hair, down to her lap.

"Bella's dad," I repeated.

"Father?" she instantly responded.

I furrowed my brow and shrugged. "Sure," I muttered, a bit confused because 'dad' and 'father' meant the same damn thing.

Her eyes flashed with anger then. "How does _he_ know where we are?" she asked a bit forcefully, her previous tone hardened.

My eyes widened at her sudden change in demeanor. "Isabella, Bella has lived with him for the past two years…" I carefully informed her.

She scowled at me then, absorbing what I had just said, and I sighed.

Apparently, Marie hadn't shared that little piece of information with her. As far as Isabella knew, this was her home. When she came back around, my Bella had already started living here at the mansion.

_My poor baby…always so confused._

"If Daddy finds out, he's gonna kill me," she muttered this ridiculous statement to me.

I rolled my eyes and tried my best to suppress a growl. "Isabella, for the _millionth_ time, your daddy is dead and no one is going to kill you. No one is ever going to hurt you," I reminded her, my own voice hardened now.

She scooted off the edge of the trampoline and landed on the ground, then glared up at me. "You keep that dirty fuckin kike _away_ from me Edward. I don't believe you," she told me through a delicately clenched jaw and gritted teeth.

She turned to walk away, but before she could make it two steps in the other direction, I gripped her upper arm and landed a firm swat to her bottom. "Go up to our room. Right _now_, Isabella," I spoke in her ear through gritted teeth of my own.

As soon as I released her bicep, she crossed her arms over her chest, and without another word, she quickly stomped her way across the large backyard. When she entered the house through the back doors, I listened to her continued footfalls as she kept up that indignant stomping all the way up to the third floor, where she entered the bedroom. The sound of the TV coming on followed shortly after, and I rolled my eyes. She would not be watching any television when I got up there.

_Damn it._

I sighed and caught Esme's sympathetic look before I started walking towards the open back doors, because once again, Isabella had forgotten to close them.

Isabella knew better than to take that fucking tone with me, and she was also very well aware by now that the use of that word would land her in the goddamn corner for a time out.

This was a sensitive subject though, so I had to keep that in mind while dealing with this particular situation. I had to somehow address her attitude, _and_ her slip with the prejudice term, all while managing to keep those two things entirely separate from the Daddy discussion.

Turns out that convincing her of Charlie's paternal status is an especially difficult feat, but also completely different from convincing her that Jim is dead.

_Maybe I should just to throw that 'Daddy' word out the window altogether…_

Yeah, and just address the two men by their individual names.

I sighed and walked into the bedroom then. Isabella was standing in the middle of the room, her gaze intently focused on the cartoon currently playing on the TV, so I quickly walked over to the flat screen, and pressed the Power button, effectively shutting off King of the Hill.

"Isabella."

Her chocolate eyes flicked over to mine. "What?" she mumbled around the yellow pacifier in her mouth. She must have grabbed it off the coffee table on her way to the stairs a minute ago.

I reached for her small hand and enveloped it in my own, then lead her over to the bed. I sat down on the edge and positioned her in front of me, so that she was standing in between my legs.

We were face to face; perfect discussion position.

"We need to talk, angel," I informed her gently.

She nodded, the plastic of the pacifier subtly moving against her lips now, indicating that she had sped up the sucking motion…or biting motion…hell, I don't know.

I decided that I would go with my earlier idea of not using the D word, and hesitantly started the conversation pertaining to this very sensitive, very confusing subject. "Okay, do you remember the other day when you and Marie were arguing over toys, and you two got confused about who Mommy was?"

She nodded.

I gave her a slightly stern look. "Isabella, I want an _answer_. If I have to take your binky away, then I will…" I threatened.

Her eyes widened a bit. "Yes," she mumbled around it.

I nodded. "Alright…well angel baby, we are having that same problem again. Except _this_ time, it's about Daddy. Do you understand that?"

She nodded hesitantly, "Yeah…"

"Okay, and because of this problem, we aren't going to say 'Daddy' while we talk about this. Can you do that, sweetheart?"

"Mm-hmm…" she hummed slowly.

I sighed, still not entirely sure where I was going with this. "Alright, we're going to start with the basics. Jim was Mommy's boyfriend. Do you understand that?" I hedged.

"Yes."

"Alright, and Charlie is Mommy's ex-husband. Charlie put you in Mommy's tummy…and that would make him your father-"

"Charlie is Father, Jim is Daddy," she supplied, interrupting me.

I furrowed my brow in contemplation.

_How the hell do I explain this?_

"Okay angel, we're not using that word, remember…?" I gently reminded her. "We're going to call them Charlie and Jim. No daddies in today's discussion."

She nodded. "Kay…"

I exhaled and exasperated sigh. "Hmmmm…okay baby love, it's like this…Charlie married Mommy, then he put you in her tummy. That would make him your father. But Charlie and Mommy didn't get along, so Mommy moved away when you were just a little baby, and then Mommy met Jim and he became Mommy's boyfriend. Jim wanted you to call him 'Daddy', so you did, and that's the reason why you know him as that, but he is _not_ your real daddy, angel."

"He's Bubba-Bobby's daddy…" her soft voice mumbled then.

_Yeah that no-daddy rule went to shit real quick._

Oh well.

"That's right sweetie pie, Jim was _Bobby's_ daddy, but that's all. He's not _your_ daddy and he is dead, Isabella. I swear to you baby girl, Jim is dead. If he wasn't, I would've killed him by now and I would've let you watch."

She smiled at that.

"Charlie is your father," I reiterated, to which she furrowed her thin brow, but I was quick to reassure her. "You don't have to call him Daddy, though. In fact, you don't have to call _anyone_ Daddy."

She kept eye contact with me and pulled the pacifier out of her mouth. "Edward?"

"Yes?"

"Charlie is a dirty kike and I _never_ wanna see'em," she told me.

_Damn it._

I moved at my natural speed then, and quickly reached around her small form to swat her ass.

She gasped and her pouty pink lips formed a small O as she continued to stare at me in silence.

I took advantage of her slightly shocked state to gently pry her fingers open and take the pacifier out of her hand; I knew that it wouldn't last long.

When I heard her exhale a shaky breath, I cocked my head to the side a bit and gazed into her wide chocolate eyes. "Aw, don't look so surprised, angel."

She started to cry then.

I sighed and put the yellow pacifier in my pocket, then watched as she brought a tiny fist up to her left eye and wiped a few tears away.

"What do you think that was for?" I asked her.

She subtly shook her head. "D-dunno…" she mumbled around a small sob.

_You don't know?_

I fixed her with a hard glare. "You don't say naughty words, Isabella. Follow your rules, or I _will_ put you over my knee," I stated in a firm tone.

She nodded and sniffled, understanding seeming to dawn on her features now.

I softened my features at her subtle response, and patiently waited for her to calm herself while I thought about how I could use this weird Daddy/Father distinction to my full advantage. Isabella sniffled and pouted for a few minutes, but was otherwise relatively calm, so when I was sure that I had her full attention again, I spoke. "Okay, so…what you said before…when you said that Charlie was a father and that Jim was a daddy…do you understand that you don't have a Daddy, just a Father?" I hedged.

_Wow, that sounded kinda confusing…_

She nodded. "Yah-huh, but I don't wanna seeeee 'em…" she whined, still sniffling occasionally.

"You don't have to see him," I quickly assured her. "You're mine Isabella, and you live here with me."

She nodded.

"Charlie may come by every once in a while to see Bella, but you don't have to see him if you don't want to. I promise," I told her, sealing that promise with a cool kiss to her forehead.

She sniffled again. "Kay."

I nodded, glad that the Daddy discussion was over.

_Now time for the punishment._

Right.

I put my 'stern face' back in place, getting ready for this next part. "Alright, you need to go to the corner for a time out."

She gasped, looking adorably confused for a moment before she started to cry again.

"_Now_, Isabella," I spoke over her cries.

She slowly shook her head, rubbing her right eye with a small fist. "Nooo…" she cried.

_Stubborn._

I stood from the bed and took her free hand in mine, then led her over to the corner by the desk despite her pleading protests. Once I had her positioned to face the wall, I swatted her ass again, and spoke in her ear from my position behind her. "Don't tell me no."

She didn't respond, just kept crying while I backed away from her.

While I was silently pacing the hardwood floor, waiting for Isabella's five minutes to finish, I decided that I would just heat up one of the frozen Stouffers meals for her dinner tonight. I'd let her pick which one she wanted though, since I had no fucking clue what was 'yummy' and what wasn't.

"C'mere angel…" I called out softly, noticing immediately when three hundred seconds had passed.

She turned around, sniffling and hiccupping from the sobs that surprisingly hadn't stopped the entire time she had been facing the caddy-cornered wall. The sound of her cries, and smell of her tears had already leveled my anxiety, but the sight of her disheveled state only served to make it worse.

She was sucking on those pretty pink lips and her rosy cheeks were wet with salty tears. Her adorable little button nose was runny, causing her to have to constantly sniffle.

I knew that it would be up to me to wipe all the wet mess away for her, but I was happy to do it. After all, it goes along with the whole _owner_ scenario, right? Running a soft, warm wash cloth over her flushed face and holding a tissue to her nose while she blows into it qualifies as 'aftercare', right?

_Fuck if I know._

I sighed, wishing that she would behave more often so that these time outs didn't have to occur on a daily basis. I understand now that she's only crying because of the simple fact that she is in trouble, and not because she's actually hurting, but I'm still trying to grasp onto the concept of _why_. That part still doesn't make any damn sense to me.

I held my arms out to her, and she walked right into my embrace. I picked her up and held her to my chest, supporting her slight weight with my forearm. I walked us into the adjoining bathroom, and sat her down on the white marble countertop, then proceeded to talk to her while I went to work on wetting a wash cloth, intent on beginning my duty as 'owner' and providing 'aftercare'.

"Don't cry, baby love…" I softly pleaded with her as I began to gently wipe her pink cheeks with the warm blue cloth.

"Edward?" her small voice cracked.

I switched from her right cheek to her left. "Yeah?"

"Why was I in trouble?" she asked in a shaky voice.

I furrowed my brow, realizing then that maybe I should have explained in a little more depth what she had done wrong _before_ I sent her to the time out corner.

_Yep. I **still** suck at this parenting crap._

I withdrew the wash cloth from her soft skin and placed it down on the countertop beside her leg. I quickly ripped off a few white squares of toilet paper from it's roll and held it up to her little button nose.

"Blow…"

She gasped for a breath, then blew into the tissue as I began my explanation. "Well sweetness, I thought I had explained it well enough, but apparently I didn't…" I trailed off, throwing the soiled tissue in the trash can. "Um…you were in trouble because you copped an attitude with me out and you said 'kike' twice…once in the backyard, and once in the bedroom. So that's why you got a spankin and you were put in time out. Both of those things are against the rules, Isabella. You will continue to get in trouble for those things until the message sinks in that you are not allowed to misbehave. Do you understand?"

"Yeah…"she trailed off, done crying now.

I kissed her button nose then. I couldn't help it, the tip of it was pink. "Good girl."

_So cute._

"Edward?"

"Yes, angel?"

"I want my binky."

I nodded, then reached into my pocket and retrieved the yellow pacifier and handed it over.

She held it in her palm and looked back up at me. "Edward?"

"Yeah?"

"I wanna cuddle," she told me, allowing the rubber nipple to slip in between her puckered lips then.

I nodded and lifted her from the counter, keeping her held to me while she tightened her grip around my neck. I kissed her cheek, taking advantage of the opportunity to inhale her heavenly aroma. "Are you hungry?" I murmured against her warm skin.

She nodded and hummed her assent, so I kept her cradled to my chest while I walked us down the stairs to the kitchen. When we approached the refrigerator, I noticed that she still wanted to be held, so I moved her over to sit on my hip while I opened the freezer door. She laid her head down on my shoulder and watched my movements silently.

"Which one do you want for dinner, sweetheart?" I asked, gesturing to the small red boxes piled high in the small freezer.

She shrugged, so I started pulling a few boxes out so that she could make an informed decision. After looking at eight boxes, she eventually pointed to one and mumbled, "Bourbon steak tips and mashed potatoes."

"You can read what it says on the box, angel?"

She nodded. "Yah-huh, I can read Edward," she affirmed quietly.

I was reminded of her automatic writing then, and internally kicked myself for questioning her ability to read when she so obviously had the amazing ability to draw and write at five years old.

I put the other seven boxes back in the freezer and shut it, before setting my little girl down on the floor in front of me so that I could have my hands free to work with the oven. She obviously wanted to stay close though, so she fisted the fabric on the side of my shirt with her small hand. I smirked and kissed her forehead, but otherwise remained silent. She could hold onto my shirt as much as she wanted.

After preheating the oven and opening the box, I set the small black tray of food on a metal cooking sheet and slipped it inside. I set the timer for thirty five minutes, then turned my attention back to the clingy little girl at my side.

"Want me to hold you…?" I trailed off softly in question.

She nodded, looking up at me.

The pacifier was subtly dancing against her lips and I could tell that she was upset about something. As ridiculous as it sounds, the pacifier's movement usually alerts me to her moods, nowadays. The movement of the plastic against her lips will gradually increase when she's upset. She has telltale signs with her lollipops, as well. Her cheeks will hollow out as she makes a concentrated effort to suck particularly hard on it.

I furrowed my brow, wondering what was troubling my mate. There were a multitude of possibilities, and I wanted to know which one it was.

I hooked my hands under her shoulders and lifted her to my chest, then walked over to the dining room table. I sat down in my usual chair and scooted Isabella around so that she was sitting in my lap with her legs dangling off to the side. She subtly kicked them, and snuggled up against my chest. I kissed her hair, and started trailing my cool fingertips through the long locks.

"What's wrong with my baby?" I cooed, talking softly into the silky strands of her hair.

She pulled her binky out of her mouth and started playing with it in her palm, fingering the ring handle on the back of it. "Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"Your daddy is nosy…"

I chuckled and nodded. "Yes angel, that's because it's his job…"

"Why did he wanna know about Joey and my Sunshine?"

I exhaled sharply, realizing where this conversation was going.

_The others…_

"Because they are apart of Bella…err, they _were_ apart of her," I explained in a quiet voice.

"Hmm…" she trailed off, seeming to think about something.

_Uhmm…_

"Isabella?"

"Yeah?"

"Are…are they _still_ apart of her?" I asked hesitantly, suddenly desperate to know if any of these 'others' were going to pop up anytime soon. After all, if anyone knew the answer to that question, it would be Isabella. Apparently, she was 'in charge' back then.

She subtly shook her head and remained quiet.

After two hundred and thirty eight seconds, she finally spoke.

"They went good bye-byes, Edward. The meanie doctors did it, it's their fault. I'm still here though, huh? B'cuz Bella loves me and you're mine, huh? Nobody can change that, so your daddy can quit tryin b'cuz s'not gonna work, donchya know…"

I just nodded, feigning understanding even though I had no fucking clue what all of this entailed.

My Bella had been a multiple before and she had healed with the exception of Isabella, but now she has become a multiple again. The knowledge of her past gives us hope that my mate's fractured mind is perfectly capable of healing again, but I remain torn on the subject. So incredibly and completely torn to the point that I don't even want to think about it.

I need what is best for my mate, which is for her to get better, but at the same time, my baser, more primal side has recognized Isabella and Marie as being my mate, as well. It's creating an immense internal conflict within my mind. I want her to heal, but I don't. The need to experience Marie and Isabella on a daily basis is insistent and strong. Asking me to live without them, is equivalent to asking me to live without my Bella. It's ridiculous…ludicrous…an impossibility. It's just simply not doable.

_Stop thinking about it._

"Edward?"

_My baby..._

I relished in the alluring sounds of her soft child-like voice. I breathed in her scent, heavily coating my tongue with the taste of her that saturated the air, and allowed my body to relax.

_Isabella is here… My angel isn't leaving me… Ever._

I subtly tightened my hold on her, wanting to believe my thoughts. "Yes, angel?"

"They weren't Bella's friends, they were _mine_."

I nodded. "Okay…"

"And the meanie doctors took them away…they made my friends leave me, Edward," she told me.

I distractedly kissed her temple. "Sorry, baby love…"

She was quiet for a few seconds, my fingertips trailing from her shoulder blades to her waist, before she spoke again. "Daddy's dead, huh?"

"Yes."

"And if he's not, then you're gonna kill him and I get to watch, huh?"

"Yes, but I promise he's dead, Isabella…"

She sighed then. "Don't want him to be, though," she mumbled to be.

_What?_

I furrowed my brow, perplexed. "Why?"

"B'cuz I _really_ wanna watch you kill him."

I chuckled.

_Sadistic little thing._

We truly are a perfect match.

"Well, I _really_ wanna kill him, but I can't because he's already dead," I reiterated.

She subtly shrugged. "We'll see," she muttered, then left it at that, sticking the pacifier back in her mouth.

I started a subtle rocking motion then, and kept it up for a few minutes before I decided to voice what I had been wondering about for the past few hours.

My Bella had mentioned something in her therapy session that I found to be particularly interesting. She was talking about her nervous habits as a child, explaining that her braids and thumb had 'juice' in them, and it made me immediately think back to these past few days when Isabella wanted her thumb or pacifier.

Was she placating her thirst and hunger, as well as using it for comfort?

"Isabella, do you want your binky more when you're hungry and thirsty?"

She nodded, confirming my thoughts.

"Why?"

"S'got juice in it," she said simply with a small shrug.

_Okay then._

"Well baby doll, I want you to do something for me…" I trailed off.

Her chocolate eyes flicked over to mine then. "What?" she muttered.

"When you're hungry or thirsty, I want you to ask for food or a drink, _instead_ of your binky. Can you do that for me?"

When a shrug was her only response, I hastily added, "Otherwise, the binkies are going to go away for a while."

She nodded then. "Yah-huh, Edward…I can do it. You don't gotta make my binkies go away. I will ask for my peanut butter and jellies or a juicy box, I promise," she told me.

I smiled and kissed her forehead. "Good girl."

She sighed then, and took that yellow pacifier out of her mouth. It seemed to be going in and out of there a lot today.

"Edward?" she questioned, holding the binky out to me with a look of disdain on her face.

I took it from her and slipped the tiny baby accessory back into my pocket. "Yeah, babe?"

She kissed my jawline below my ear, then looked pointedly at the arm currently around her waist. "I want down now…I'm fuckin thirsty."

I nodded and loosened my grip so that Marie could stand. She went straight into the kitchen and I followed after her when I heard the refrigerator door being opened. When I entered the brightly lit room, I saw that she had grabbed one of Isabella's water bottles, and she was now chugging the cool clear liquid at an alarmingly fast rate.

My eyes widened a bit when she finally took the bottle away from her mouth and gasped for a breath after half of the water bottle's contents were gone.

"Slow down, love…"

She just smirked and waved me off, before bringing the sport top back to her lips and tipping it back again for another drink.

_Yeah…the sooner I get rid of the pacifiers, the better._

Seeing my mate chug down water like that only served to steel my resolve even more. I had to complete my mission in sabotaging the binkies because Isabella had clearly been substituting those things for actual sustenance. She wants her pacifier when she is actually thirsty.

I stuck my hand in my pocket and began to absently fiddle with the damn thing while Marie continued to drain her bottle of water. When only a quarter of the liquid was left the plastic container, she seemed more than satisfied and I was very relieved.

She absently ran a hand through her long hair, then placed it on her hip as she turned to face me. "Hey Edward, where's Mom?"

"Out back in the garden."

She bit her lip and gave me a curt nod. "M'kay then I'm gonna go out back in the flowery fuckin garden, too," she told me, and with that, she turned on her heel and left the room.

After checking the timer on the oven and realizing that my girl's dinner would be done in twelve minutes and fourteen seconds, I smiled and took advantage of the open opportunity to sabotage the yellow pacifier with a pair of scissors that we kept in the kitchen drawer. We had been using the scissors to open Isabella's popsicles for her, but it could serve this purpose as well.

I listened to Marie tell Esme about 'the fuckawesome fair' that was coming to town this weekend, while I opened the small drawer beside the dishwasher. I quickly retrieved the pair of pointy, thin scissors and took the offending binky with the pretty stars on it out of my pocket. With one last look towards the back doors, I made the millimeter incision into the very tip of the rubber nipple. After carefully examining my handy work and realizing that a pair of chocolate human eyes wouldn't be able to detect the small hole, I stuffed it back in my pocket with the cell phone, then put the scissors back in the kitchen drawer and shut it with a quiet click.

I ignored the sudden wave of guilt that I felt at ruining my baby's things, then turned back to the oven timer and continued to listen to the conversation going on outside. Marie was talking with Esme about this weekend and asking if she was going to come too.

I smiled, glad that my mate finally had a reliable maternal figure in her life.

My Bella's cell phone began ringing then. I furrowed my brow and pulled the small blue phone out of my pocket, checking the caller ID, then became very agitated when I didn't recognize the number displaying itself on the screen.

_If it's anyone from La Push, I'm changing her fucking number._

"Hello?" I greeted, holding the phone up to my ear.

"Hello…um, is Bella there?" came a woman's voice over the line.

It sounded slightly familiar, but I couldn't quite place who it belonged to.

"Who is this?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm Deb, her neighbor. I was trying to get a hold of her, but she's not home…" she trailed off uncertainly.

"Oh. Um, yeah, that would be because she doesn't live there anymore. You're Katy's mother, right?"

"Yes, and you are?"

"I'm Edward, her m- uhh…boyfriend," I quickly corrected myself, realizing that telling this human that Bella was my mate would sound more than a little weird. "She's staying at my place now, actually. Hold on a second and I'll see if she's available," I told her.

"Alright, thank you."

I was aware that Marie knew this Deb person, so I left the phone on the counter and went out back to see if she wanted to take the phone call or not.

"…and they got these fuckawesome roller coasters that go _super_ fast, like you're haulin ass mid-air, no joke, and it's a rush like you wouldn't fuckin believe, Ma-"

"Marie, sweetheart…" I called out to her a soon as I set foot onto the paved patio.

She abruptly took her attention away from Esme, and turned it over to me. I smiled.

_That's right, love...focus on **me**. Your **mate**._

"Yeah, sexy?"

I smirked. "Deb is on the phone. Do you want to talk to her, or would you like me to tell her that you are unavailable at the moment?"

She stood from her knelt position on the ground then, and gave me a small nod. "I'll talk to her," she told me, then followed me back inside the house.

The oven timer went off then, so I prepared my girl's plate while eavesdropping on her phone call.

Apparently, Katy needed a babysitter for the next two or three hours, and Marie readily accepted this request before she went back outside to give Esme the phone so that she could give Deb directions to our place.

"Dinner's ready, love," I told Marie when she walked back into the kitchen with an empty water bottle in her hand.

She nodded and slid right past me, then tossed the bottle into the trash can, mimicking one of her basketball moves. When it landed directly in the can, she smiled and exclaimed, "Score! Oh yeah…I got skills…" she trailed off, a bit smug, then took the plate from my hands. I smirked and subtly shook my head at her, but she just rocked up onto her tippy-toes and gave me a chaste kiss. "Mmm, smells fuckin yummy. Thanks, babe," she told me with a wink, then turned and made her way to the dining room table.

I quickly poured a tall glass of her favorite apple-berry juice, then followed after her into the dining room. After I placed the cup next to her plate, I took my usual seat beside her and indulged in one of my favorite activities: watching my mate consume food.

Not only was it satisfying knowing that _I_ provided the sustenance that her body needed, but I was continually entranced by the way her delicate jaw line moved when she chewed. The subtle movement of her throat when she swallowed was very enticing, as well. I continued to stare until she broke the silence by speaking in that beautifully erotic voice of hers.

"What time is it?"

"Around six…"

She nodded and took a small sip of juice from her cup. "Katy's comin over, Edward," she told me.

I nodded. "I know."

I wasn't sure how I felt about that, though. If Isabella came out to play with Katy, and the little girl was still here past Isabella's bedtime, then I would have to take her away from her fun and toys to put her in the bath so that she could get ready for bed, and either Alice or Esme would have to watch Katy until her mother came to pick her up. I didn't want to have to deal with one of Isabella's fits, and I'm not sure how well Katy would handle that either. She seemed to be awfully attached to Bella that last time I saw those two together.

_Okay, this isn't so bad…_

It was 7:03 now and Katy had been here for the past twenty seven minutes. Esme, Alice and I were all in the living room observing Marie interact Katy. We knew from our past experience that Marie cared a great deal for the small child, but we kept the fact that she is an alternate personality, capable of wavering feelings, at the forefront of our minds. Esme and Alice were concerned for the human child, but I couldn't care less for the tiny female. I was solely focused on my mate and the activities that she had been engaging in with the toddler. I noted that Isabella hadn't made an appearance yet and I wasn't sure if she would, but I would continue to keep watch, regardless.

Katy continued to hop and dance around to the music coming from the movie playing on the flat screen. Marie sat Indian style on the floor with a smile on her face, holding the little girl's tiny hands in her own and singing, "Shake, shake, shake…shake, shake, shake…shake yo' booty. Shake yo' booty!"

Katy was loving it. She kept giggling and twisting her small body from side to side, successfully shaking her little rear end while Marie sang along to the chipmunk movie. Soon, the tiny human became slightly breathless and collapsed into Marie's arms with a fit of giggles from their playing.

Marie enveloped the girl's tiny form into her thin arms and kissed the soft blonde curls at the top of her head. "You havin fun, Katy doll?" Marie asked.

Katy beamed up at her. "Yes!"

"Mmmmm…" Marie hummed against her chubby little cheek then, a small smile forming on her lips, while she swayed the child from side to side in her arms.

Katy laughed at the feeling that the humming buzz caused her cheek, her thoughts shining through with the love and admiration that she felt for my mate. She wrapped her tiny arms around Marie's neck and squeezed, hugging her with all her small might. Marie hugged her back, then quickly laid her down on the floor and started to lightly tickle the child's sides, belly and arm pits.

Katy squealed and giggled, squirming around in her efforts to get away from Marie's tickling fingers. The energetic child managed to get up on all fours and crawl a few feet away, before she stood and ran over to the front door with a big smile on her face.

She turned back around, still breathless and giggling slightly. "You can't get me, Bewwa…" the child softly taunted.

Marie smirked and cocked her head to the side a bit. "You wanna bet?" she playfully challenged.

This elicited more giggling laughter from Katy as she nodded her assent.

Marie stood then, smiling back at the small child standing a few feet away from her. "I'm gonna get you!" she exclaimed suddenly, then dashed forward, causing Katy to squeal and dodge her by heading for the steps and beginning to crawl up them at a hurried pace.

I was going to interrupt their playtime then, worried and not wanting the tiny girl playing on the steps, but Marie snatched her up before I could voice my concerns.

"Ahhh!" Katy yelled amongst her laughter as Marie went back to tickling her sides, keeping the child in her tight embrace the entire time.

A few minutes later, Katy and Marie finally quieted down and settled in to watch the movie on the flat screen. Marie sat on the floor Indian style and Katy sat in the small space on her lap. I saw from the child's thoughts that she recognized this position as the usual seating arrangement when it came to watching movies or television with my Bella.

Katy stood from Marie's lap then, and hesitantly walked over to where I sat on the couch with my mother and sister. Her thoughts showed slight recognition of us, but it was still a bit fuzzy. She wasn't sure where she knew us from, but she was aware that she did know us.

"Juice?" she shyly squeaked up at me.

My eyes widened a bit as I gazed down at the small child. I hadn't read in her thoughts that she was actually planning on speaking to any of us. Before I could respond, Alice piped up and told Katy that she would go get her a juice box. Katy smiled at her, then ran back over to Marie. When my gaze followed her hurried movement and I caught sight of my mate again, I noticed the slight change in her demeanor.

Marie did not look happy as she gazed at Katy somewhat curiously now. Katy, of course, didn't notice this at all, and just sat down on the floor beside her best friend, instead of in her lap this time.

I took a guess and hedged that Isabella was around now and she was observing this strange little child with an immense amount of curiosity. Katy's attention was focused on the TV in front of her, but Isabella's head remained turned down and to the side while she kept her silent stare on Katy.

Alice came back into the room then, with an open juice box prepared for Katy. Isabella noticed the familiar yellow box being placed in Katy's tiny outstretched hands, and she immediately turned to shoot a glare at Alice.

_Uh-oh…_

Those were her juice boxes.

I quickly got up and went to retrieve another Hi-C juice box from the refrigerator for my little girl. After sticking the small straw in the tiny silver hole, I brought the drink out to my mate.

"Here, baby girl…" I said softly in offering, handing the box over.

Isabella smiled up at me and eagerly took it from my grasp, then immediately turned her attention back to the small child by her side. I slowly backed away and took my seat beside Esme again. We watched in silence as Katy watched her movie and Isabella continued to stare, her chocolate eyes slowly roaming all over the tiny girl's form, paying particularly close attention to the soft blonde curls that cascaded down her back.

Eighteen awkward minutes later, Marie's voice rang out in the otherwise quiet room. "Hey munchkin…"

"Yeah?"

"Wanna go play outside before it gets too dark?"

"Yeah!" Katy squeaked excitedly, hopping up off the floor.

My mother, Alice, and I all looked at each other and nodded in silent agreement that we would follow. Esme and Alice went outside first, but I waited behind and followed the girls out. Marie carried Katy and the position allowed the toddler to stare up at my evil gold eyes while I trailed behind the two of them. I smirked at her and she blushed, giggling softly at me, before laying her head down on my mate's small shoulder.

I sat down on the porch swing and watched as Marie carefully put Katy on the trampoline before climbing onto it herself. Marie sat on the black stretchy material and watched as Katy hopped all around the large bouncy surface. Marie distractedly sang along with Katy to a nursery rhyme about hopping down a bunny trail, or something, before I noticed that same change in my mate's demeanor. Her soft melodic voice trailed off and faded out until it was just Katy's squeaky one singing about a bunny trail, while she continued to methodically bounce.

I noticed Isabella's scowl and angry chocolate eyes a second before I saw a vision in Alice's thoughts. The vision of Isabella pushing Katy off the trampoline caused me to race over there before this hypothetical event could ever have a chance to take place. Isabella was clearly still pondering on this decision as she kept up her silent glare on an oblivious, happy, hopping Katy. Alice followed soon after, intent on watching Katy while I took care of my very upset mate.

"Isabella, baby…" I called out to her, trying to get her attention.

She tore her gaze away from Katy and looked at me. "Edward?"

"Yes?"

"She's on _my_ jump-a-lene…" she trailed off petulantly, trying to tell on the small child.

I nodded, trying to think fast. I had to divert her attention elsewhere. I held my arms out to her. "C'mere angel, I wanna hold you. Wanna come play with me inside? It's almost time for your bubbles…" I trailed off persuasively.

Isabella shot one last scathing glare towards a giggling Katy before crawling over to me. I hooked my hands underneath her shoulders and pulled her to me, then quickly carried her away, back inside the mansion. I needed to separate my mate from the small human child, so I told Alice and Esme in our frequency that they were going to be the babysitters for the remainder of the evening while I carried my little girl upstairs to our bedroom.

Isabella clung to me and I listened to the many whispered "Mines" that she softly murmured into my ear and against my neck. I furrowed my brow and tightened my hold on her, rubbing soothing circles into the small of her back, just trying to give her some kind of reassurance.

When we reached our bedroom, I sat down in the large rocking recliner and began to rock my little girl, knowing how much she loved it when I did that. I needed her to calm down and talk rationally about this. I had my suspicions about Isabella tonight, but it wasn't that she would become hostile towards the child…it was that she would be so caught up in playing, she would try to postpone her bedtime.

_Boy, was I wrong…_

"What's up, baby girl?" I asked in a light tone as I leaned back into the recliner so that I could look at Isabella's face while she talked to me.

She was straddling my lap with her bare legs in small shorts, but remained sitting upright like I wanted her to, instead up leaning down into my chest.

She huffed. "That girl got my juicy box _and_ she gots ugly yellow hair _and_ she talked to you _and_ she was jumpin on my jump-a-lene, but she didn't even ask first!" she told me, completely exasperated.

I nodded. "I know…" I muttered quietly.

I heard her sniffle then, and her eyes began to water as she started to speak in an incredibly rushed, cracked voice. "Edward, you're _mine_, huh? She doesn't get'ta talk to you, b'cuz you're mine, huh? You're mine, Edward…Edward, you're mine. It's b'cuz you're mine, huh? Edward I belong to you, and you're mine…Edward, you're mine and it's b'cuz you love me b'cuz you're mine, huh? Edward you're mi-"

_Woah…_

I furrowed my brow, concerned. "Yes, angel, I'm your's. I'm all your's, Isabella. It's okay, sweetheart," I interrupted, placating her and lightly trailing my fingertips along her side in a comforting gesture.

I noticed then, that Alice had brought Katy back inside and she was asking for Bella, getting upset when she didn't see her in the living room, but I couldn't find it in myself to give a damn. That human child had upset my mate; she could whine and fuss all she wanted to. I suddenly found myself wondering when her mother was going to come and take her away.

Isabella let out a small cry then.

I was surprised by it, but I quickly enveloped her small form into my arms and leaned back into the large reclining rocker chair again. I continued the slow rocking motion and placed cool kisses along the soft silky hairline of her temple, always keeping my angel cradled to my chest. "Shhh…I'm _your's_ baby girl…all your's," I whispered to her as she quietly cried and tightened her hold around my neck.

"Yah-huh, you're mine…and she can't have you…" she trailed off, her voice squeaking as she successfully stopped her barely there cries.

I sighed, realizing now what the real problem was.

Isabella, my _extremely_ possessive baby, was jealous. Again.

She lifted her face from my shoulder and I gently wiped the salty tears away with my fingertips, then placed a cool kiss to both her rosy cheeks. "No more tears, baby love…you don't gotta cry," I assured in a soft voice.

She nodded. "Edward?"

"Hmm?" I hummed, continuing to rock us in the chair.

She sniffled and relaxed into my chest. "When's that girl leavin?"

I combed my fingers through her long locks, and gently trailed them down her back. "In a little bit, probably in a hour…" I trailed off.

"I don't _like_ her."

I nodded. "I know, baby."

"I don't wanna see her."

"You don't have to," I said simply.

She nodded against my chest. "Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"I want my bubbles…"

I nodded and straightened up, the softly patted her bottom, encouraging her to hop up off my lap. "Okay angel, let me pick out some jammies for you to wear, then I'll run your bath."

She nodded and stood. "Kay."

Isabella went over to the flat screen on the wall, hit the power button, then proceeded to stare at the cartoon on the screen while I walked over to the dresser. After searching through the bottom drawer, I chose a purple tank top/shorts pajama set. I grabbed a tiny pair of purple cotton panties from the second drawer, then took the small articles of clothing into the bathroom with me.

I set the soft fabric down on the counter, then turned the tub's faucet on and plugged the drain. When the tub started to fill, I went back over to the sink and reached into the cabinet below for my little girl's bath toys and strawberry scented bubble bath solution. After adding a capful of the pink liquid under the faucet's rushing water, I put the bottle away, then stood there and patiently waited.

Isabella walked in then, wondering when her bubbles were going to be ready to play in.

"In a minute, angel," I placated.

She nodded then fisted my shirt in her small hand, just like she had done before, so I wrapped my arm around her frail shoulders and tucked her into my side.

I placed a cool kiss to the top of her head. "Are you still upset, Isabella?" I asked, concerned.

She subtly shook her head and muttered, "Mm-mm…"

"Good."

"B'cuz you're mine, huh…" she pressed.

I nodded. "Yes."

"Kay."

I stepped forward then, and turned the tub's faucet off. After reminding Isabella to squeeze all the water out of her hair and to get dressed in the bathroom, I left her to it and went downstairs to address matters with Esme and Alice.

Katy had her coloring book open with several crayons scattered across the floor, but she was sitting in Esme's lap playing a patty cake game.

I bypassed them and went to Alice.

"Alice, I need you to get on the phone and call the child's mother. Imitate Bella's voice and say that you're sick and unable to watch Katy anymore, and that she needs to come get her daughter as soon as possible," I instructed in our frequency.

Alice rolled her eyes, exasperated. "Edward, this is ridiculous-"

"I don't care, Alice!" I interrupted. "Isabella is upset. Katy needs to go home."

Alice narrowed her eyes at me. "Isabella can _get over it_ and stay upstairs with you, while Katy hangs out down here with us. Edward, nothing happened. We don't have to shove Katy out the door, she doesn't need to leave…"

I caught myself glaring at the back of a small blonde head. "Yes, she _does_ need to leave," I reiterated. "Call her mother, Alice."

I didn't wait for her to respond, just turned and left the room. I entered the kitchen with the intention to make some chocolate milk to put in my little girl's new sippy-cup. I hadn't forgotten that she had said she wanted it again at bedtime, so I was going to grant that request for her.

As soon as the cup was filled to the brink with the odd nesquick/milk mixture, I left the kitchen and passed by Alice, who was in the process of dialing the number to Katy's mother's place of work. Alice's thoughts kept screaming at me that I was overreacting, but like I said before, I don't give a damn.

Isabella is my mate, which means nobody matters to me but her. She is above all else. This is where she lives, and I'm not going to stand idly by while she is upset and uncomfortable in her own home, especially when the cause for her discomfort is a small human toddler. The solution is easy…make the child go home. So that's exactly what is going to happen. Katy needs to fucking leave.

I made my way up the stairs back to our bedroom and set the princess sippy-cup down on the nightstand, then proceeded to try and pick out a movie for Isabella to watch before bedtime. I listened to her echoing hums and giggles coming from the bathroom while my eyes scanned the many dvd titles in our current media collection. Eventually, I chose Harry Potter and loaded it into the dvd player, knowing that the familiar sounds of a movie starting up would lure Isabella out of the bathroom. She had been in there giggling and splashing around for the past seventeen minutes, and that's plenty of time to get cleaned up in the bathtub.

I heard Isabella gasp at the sounds of Harry Potter starting up. "Edward?"

"Yeah?" I called from my position on the bed.

"What you put on?"

"Harry Potter," I responded, listening to the sounds of water sloshing around as she hurried to rinse the shampoo from her hair.

Eighteen seconds later, there was another gasp for breath when she lifted her head from the water, and her reply was, "What's that?"

"It's a movie…" I trailed off, stating the obvious.

"Kay."

I smiled in anticipation, knowing that she would be out here any minute now, and I would get to take advantage of another opportunity to brush her long locks. I hadn't done it since this morning, and I was becoming impatient.

_I want to brush her hair, and I want to brush it **now**._

"Edward?"

I turned around and saw my mate standing in the doorway to the bathroom, dressed in that skimpy purple pajama outfit that claimed she was 'Little Miss Naughty'.

_Fucking adorable._

Her skin was flushed a faint pink color from the warm temperature of the bath water, and her silky, chocolate strands hung limply down the small of her back. They were damp, and long, and most importantly, ready to be brushed.

"Hey angel…" I said softly with a smile.

She smiled back at me, then crawled up onto the bed. After she got comfortable amongst the pillows gathered up by the headboard, she held her hairbrush out to me, like a good girl, and looked at me expectantly.

I grabbed her cup with the sparkly pink top on it from the nightstand, and offered to trade her that for the hairbrush. She eagerly agreed and I joined her on the bed, sitting behind her and pulling her into the V formation between my legs, wanting to feel her body's warmth and constant beating pulse against my chest and abdomen. Isabella sat there, comfortably snuggled against my body, and happily sipped from her princess cup while I repeatedly ran brush strokes through her _mmm_ smell so good locks.

She was gradually becoming more and more engrossed in this new film. She'd never seen Harry Potter before; never even heard of it. I could tell that she liked it, though. I smirked whenever I caught her glaring at Harry's aunt and uncle on the screen. She got all huffy when they wouldn't let him read his damn mail and the few times that Harry got locked in the closet.

It was all very adorable.

Katy's mother came by and got her while we were watching the beginning of the movie. I didn't let Isabella know what was going on, though…I just kept on brushing.

"Edward?"

I stuck my nose in her now dry hair, and softly nuzzled her slim neck. I skimmed my nose along the sensitive skin behind her ear and inhaled the intoxicating aroma there.

_So sweet..._

"Hmm?" I murmured against her warm flesh.

"Itchy-hotts…" she mumbled.

I immediately felt the instant rush of heat against her neck, letting me know that her face had lit up in a delicious blush.

_Aw._

I nodded and whispered against the shell of her ear, "Okay."

"Kay…" she whispered back.

I softly patted her bare thigh then, and she took that as a sign to crawl over my leg so that she was sitting beside me now, instead of in between my legs. I smiled and kissed her cheek, then muttered a quick, "Be right back," before standing from the bed and taking the hairbrush back to the bathroom.

While I was in there, I drained the still full tub of the bubble water, and put Isabella's toys away, then cleaned up the water mess on the floor. After I ran the shower head for a few minutes to rinse away the left over bubble residue, I shut it off and closed the shower curtain, glad that I was getting better and faster at my new nightly routine of cleaning up after Isabella's bath time.

I saw the small tube of external cream sitting on the counter, so I grabbed that, along with two feminine wipes from the bottom right hand drawer below the counter.

With supplies in my hand, I walked back over to the bedside where Isabella sat, still entranced by the movie. I laid the items down on the gold comforter, then grabbed a pillow from the collection over by the headboard, and set it down by the foot of the bed so that Isabella's body could lay sideways again.

"Okay angel, c'mere," I said invitingly, patting the spot where I wanted her to lay.

Her chocolate eyes flicked over to mine, and she blushed while giving me a small smile, suddenly being shy.

I smirked. "Come on…" I gently coaxed.

"M'kay…" she mumbled.

She quickly crawled over to the foot of the bed and laid down like she had done last night, burying her face in the plush pillow and making a soft humming noise.

I patted her bottom a few times. "Lay on your back, baby," I told her.

She rolled over and got comfortable, squirming around a bit and nestling her small body into the gold comforter.

I walked over to the plastic basinet on the floor and picked up her stuffed bear, then brought it back over to her. "Do you want Fuzzy, princess? I think he wants to play…" I trailed off suggestively.

She nodded and hummed in agreement, reaching for him. "Mmm-hmm…" I handed the soft toy over just as she piped up with, "I want my binky too, Edward. My yellow and pretty stars…" she trailed off longingly.

I nodded and reached into my pocket for the broken yellow pacifier. She held her hand out for it, but I subtly shook my head and leaned over to slip the rubber nipple in between her lips myself. After I kissed her smooth, warm forehead, I straightened back up and went back over to the foot of the bed, steeling myself for what I was about to do.

I was lucky that Jasper had arrived home less than an hour ago, so he would be able to help me out with this again. I don't know what I would do without his talent in this situation. I wouldn't be able to control myself from trying to take a simple medicine application to an intimate level. My craving to taste her again has increased, and restraining myself is becoming almost unbearable. I can't wait until tomorrow. Tomorrow she will be all better. Tomorrow I can fill my mouth with her sweet essence again…tomorrow I can taste that pink little clit and-

"Edward?"

"Damn it, Jasper. Help me," I whispered at our frequency, realizing where my thoughts had taken me. I was allowing myself to fantasize again.

_A thank you would be nice_ was his thought as I began to feel his calm wash over my body the same time that I sensed the lust being pulled from my thoughts.

"Yeah, thanks," I whispered back to him, before I responded to my baby girl. "Yes, angel?"

"Itchy-hotts…" she mumbled around her pacifier.

_Right._

I nodded and reached out to lightly run my fingertips along her small, but prominent hipbones. "Okay baby, lift up your bottom for me."

She did and I tried to be quick about slipping her purple shorts and panties down her smooth legs. When I had those removed, I set them off to the side and ran a cool wipe over her soft bare folds, and in between them too.

"Baby love, what's Harry doing at school?" I asked, trying to distract her from what I was doing.

She hugged Fuzzy bear to her chest and kept the pacifier in her mouth as she mumbled, "He's talkin to that girl…"

_Okay._

I nodded. "I'm almost done, angel," I told her as I quickly dispensed a small white strip of medicine onto my fingertip.

"Cold finger," I murmured before allowing myself to touch her exposed, warm sex.

I gently ran my fingertip up and down her pretty little slit, satisfied that there wasn't anymore irritated pinkness bothering my mate's soft, sensitive flesh.

This should be the last time I need to do this.

After wiping my finger off on the other wipe, I grabbed her panties and shorts off the bed and slipped her dainty little feet into their proper holes, so that I could get my baby dressed again. She obediently lifted her bottom when she was told to, and when I was done, she abruptly sat up and wanted my attention.

"Edward?" she muttered, interrupting my intended hurried pace to the bathroom.

I paused and turned around. "Hmm?" I hummed with raised eyebrows.

"I want luvins…"

I smirked. "Luvins?"

"Yah-huh, kisses and cuddles, Edward…luvins…" she explained softly around her pacifier.

I chuckled and nodded, walking back over to where she sat on the bed. "Okay sweetness, I just need to wash my hands first. I'll be right back," I told her with a quick kiss to her forehead.

"Kay," she acquiesced, then turned her attention back to the movie.

I rushed through what I needed to do in the bathroom. I threw the wipes away and placed the external cream in the medicine cabinet, then washed my hands with my Bella's foaming anti-bacterial soap that my little girl seemed to like so much. After I dried my hands, I went back to the bedroom to join Isabella on the bed.

She was laying sideways, curled around her bear on the bed, but instead of the pacifier being in her mouth, her thumb was there now, which meant that she was tired and that it was bedtime. I swiped the binky off the comforter where it lay by her head, and stuck it in my pocket to throw away after she fell asleep.

_Two down, one to go._

I draped my arm over her thin waist, and started lightly tickling my cool fingertips along her flat belly.

"Edward, luvins?" her quiet voice lilted, as she turned around in my embrace and nuzzled her little button nose into the soft fabric of my shirt.

I nodded and placed a gentle kiss to the top of her head. "Mmm-hmm…" I hummed, tightening my hold on her lower back and rubbing soothing circles there.

She sighed a yawn. "Kay…" she mumbled sleepily around her thumb, closing her chocolate eyes.

I kept her cradled to my chest while she ran her warm fingertips along my slightly exposed collarbone.

I kissed her forehead. "Goodnight, angel…" I murmured softly against her smooth flesh.

She sighed again, slipping over the brink of unconsciousness. Her heartbeat slowed and her breathing evened out, while the end sounds of Harry Potter played in the back round.

I gently kissed her forehead again and let my lips linger there, enjoying the feeling of her warm, pulsing blood rushing by just below the surface of her perfect creamy flesh.

My fingertips stopped massaging her lower back and began lightly running a continuous trail up and down her delicate spine.

An hour later, I noticed that my index finger had spelled out 'My beautiful girl, my baby love' on her left shoulder blade.

Much later, when darkness had enveloped the room and the idle TV had shut itself off, I murmured my assurance to her again. "I'm your's, Isabella," I whispered into the soft curls of her silky hair. "I'll always be your's."

* * *

A/N:

Poor Katy didn't even do anything...damn


	49. Protest And Reflect

EPOV

"If you don't sit down and eat your breakfast-" I started, but she interrupted me with a shake of her head.

"Huh-uh," she told me before she skipped off, right back into the living room.

"Isabella!" I yelled, completely fed up and exasperated.

"No!" she hollered back.

_For fuck's sake._

I kept up a determined stride into the living room and saw Isabella standing up on the furniture, bounce-walking from one cushion to the next. The Fairly Odd Parents were playing on the flat screen in the backround and she kept her gaze focused there while she distractedly twirled a strand of her hair. Her coloring book was open and on display on the coffee table, and several crayons lay haphazardly out of their box and on the table while others had rolled off onto the floor.

Isabella, clad in only her small purple pajamas, looked over in my direction and stuck her tongue out at me. "No," she repeated.

I rolled my eyes, irritated.

We had been going through this all morning. Well, ever since she found out that therapy was scheduled for after breakfast…

She had woken up bright and early, just after 7am, and she dressed her doll while I made the bed. After that, she swallowed the tiny Prozac pill, with a juice box this time, and grabbed her stuffed bear, then came to sit on my lap in the rocking recliner for another story time.

After three Precious Moments Through-The-Day short stories, Marie showed up and put an abrupt stop to the 'stupid baby stories'. I complied, completely understanding that she didn't want me to read to her about a little girl who had lost her puppy. She went to use the restroom and brush her teeth, while I used the opportunity to quickly dress in a pair of dark wash blue jeans and a loose fitting black cotton t-shirt.

When Marie came out of the bathroom, teeth and hair brushed, she said that she didn't want to get dressed yet, but that she wanted to watch her music videos and play her Mario game instead. I nodded approvingly, but told her that we needed to compromise because she had to start utilizing the weight room.

"Marie, sweetheart…how about you play your DS game and listen to the radio while you do twenty minutes on the treadmill?"

She subtly shrugged, nodding and giving me a small smile. "Yeah, okay. I'll go play on the fuckawesome cool new machines."

So, after grabbing the video game out of the drawer, she went next door and I trailed close behind, intent on showing her how to work the machine. She stepped up onto the treadmill and watched as I pressed different buttons to set the pace and schedule the timer for twenty minutes. She started up her game as I powered on the small boom box and started a CD that she had chosen, turning the volume almost all the way up when she had distractedly requested that I do so.

After twelve minutes, and about half way through Baby Bash's 'Sugar Sugar', Isabella came back around and wanted me to hold her.

"Uh-uh, baby girl…finish your walk," I told her.

"Nooo…" she whined, but continued with her fast paced steps anyway.

I sighed, understanding that she wanted me nearby, so I stopped what I was doing in trying to adjust the punching bag, and walked over to the treadmill. She reached out a small hand to me as soon as I came to stand directly by her side, but I shook my head.

"No, Isabella," I admonished her, then immediately took her hand away from my forearm and put it back on the handle bar.

She whined in the back of her throat, giving me a frustrated look. "I _want_ you…" she told me.

I nodded and lightly trailed my fingertips along her bare arm, silently conveying that I would stay close. "Keep walking until the machine beeps, angel," I instructed.

"Till it goes beep beep beep?" she asked in her high-pitched voice.

"Yes, until it beeps," I reaffirmed.

She huffed, clearly not seeing the point, but did as I said anyway.

I noticed that my Bella's Nintendo DS was laying completely forgotten on the machine's status screen now. Apparently, Isabella wasn't interested in that particular toy, so I reached for it, and after snapping it closed, I slipped it into my pocket for safe keeping.

I delighted in the new things that her adrenaline and sweat were doing to her already overwhelmingly sweet scent while Isabella talked and finished her eight minutes of what Alice had called 'power-walking'. After a conversation that consisted of sparklies, Bella, her doll, and her Fuzzy bear, the machine finally beeped.

"All done, Edward," she needlessly informed me.

I nodded, then lifted her from the treadmill and brought her small form to my chest so that she could latch herself onto me.

She casually swung a foot on each side of my hip and kissed my cheek. "Edward?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm gonna sparkle n' shine just like you someday, huh?"

"You already sparkle n' shine, baby love," I reminded her, taking her warm hand in my own and holding her manicured nails up for her to see again.

She nodded and smiled brightly at me. "I do, huh? I'm pretty, huh?" she chirped.

I smiled back and gently palmed the back of her head, cradling her to me as I placed soft, reverent kisses all along her rosy left cheekbone. "Yes, angel, you're very pretty…" I murmured when my lips reached the delicate shell of her little ear.

She giggled and I became entranced, watching the effect that my icy breath had on the smooth skin of her neck and shoulder. Hundred of tiny goosebumps had erupted and I suddenly wanted to play connect the dots. I placated myself with nuzzling her neck instead, placing a frosty kiss there as well, and smiling against her warmth when I heard her giggles grow even louder, echoing in the stairwell.

She tightened her hold on me when she figured out that we were going down the stairs. "Edward, cartoons?" she asked.

I nodded. "Mm-hmm…"

Alice had already brought one of Isabella's coloring books and a pack of crayons into the living room for me and placed them on the coffee table while we were in the weight room. I needed them down there to occupy my little girl while I prepared her breakfast in the kitchen. I decided that cartoons could serve as a distraction, as well.

I sat her down on the plush white couch, then turned and walked across the room, intent on turning the flat screen on for her cartoons. After I made sure the channel was on Nickelodean, per her request, I went back over to where my little girl now sat on the floor coloring, and placed a soft kiss to her upturned forehead. She smiled up at me as I told her that I'd be in the kitchen, making her a 'very yummy breakfast'.

While I was standing in front of the fridge, holding the door open and trying to remember how Esme cooked scrambled eggs and waffles, Carlisle made an appearance and inadvertently told Isabella about the therapy session that was scheduled for after breakfast.

I internally cringed when I heard her yell at him. I hadn't had a chance to tell my little girl that there would be any therapy this morning, but it looked as though Carlisle had just taken care of that task for me.

Isabella is the one who always makes a big fuss over it, doing anything and everything under the sun to try and weasel her way out of it, and she was clearly not going to disappoint this morning.

Obviously.

"Nu-uh, you're lyin…" I heard her tell Carlisle.

"I am not," he insisted in a quiet voice.

"Yah-huh," she countered.

"I'm not lying to you, Isabella," he repeated.

"Yah-huh, you are. You're bein a liar liar pants on fire," she told him.

"No, dear…I'm not."

I heard her huff. "I'munna tell…" she threatened.

I rolled my eyes, picking up a cold white egg and trying to figure out how to crack the damn thing open without completely obliterating it in the process.

"Edward!" she yelled then.

Carlisle chuckled quietly in our frequency. _Oh no, she's going to tell on me…_ he thought, his tone one of silent amusement.

I sighed and walked out of the kitchen, into the living room. "Yes, angel?"

She stopped her coloring to point an accusing purple crayon up at Carlisle. "He's. Lying," she told me matter-of-factly.

Carlisle turned to face me then. _Oh no, Edward. Am I in trouble?_ he thought at me, clearly mocking this whole situation and having entirely too much fun with the concept of 'being told on'.

_You have got to be kidding me._

He can be such a child.

"You are _not_ helping," I admonished him in our frequency.

He simply gave me a knowing smirk, finding it amusing that I had to play 'parent' so often these days, then turned to leave the room, intent on going up to his study and waiting for the therapy session to begin.

I turned my attention back to my little girl. "No...he's not, baby girl. You _do_ have therapy after breakfast," I confirmed in a gentle tone.

She gasped, "No!"

"Yes," I calmly stated.

"No!"

"Yes."

She clenched her jaw and screamed, slapping her hand down onto the coffee table. "No!" she yelled again.

I raised my eyebrows at her. "You can keep saying 'no', sweetness, but that's not going to change this morning's schedule," I informed her casually.

"No!"

I felt my irritation begin to spike. "Isabella…stop it," I demanded in a low voice.

"No!"

I glared at her, my stern face composed on my features now. "Don't tell me no," I stated firmly.

She started to cry then.

Well, at least she wasn't yelling her mantra of 'no' anymore, so I took it as a small accomplishment, then turned and headed back towards the kitchen.

My Bella had advised me to walk away from a stressful situation, so that's exactly what I was going to do. Isabella can cry out her anger for a minute or two while I go back to trying to figure out how to make these blasted scrambled eggs.

By some miracle, twenty six minutes, and eighteen eggs later, I had successfully scrambled two eggs and toasted one waffle for my mate's breakfast, which brings us back to the present time.

Isabella had calmed down from her tears, but was now being a petulant little brat, and would only speak to me to tell me 'no' again. My family was very well aware of what was going on and had chosen to leave the first floor of the mansion about thirty eight minutes ago, half-heartedly predicting where my little girl's attitude would land her.

I gazed curiously at Isabella while she continued to walk across the couch and watch her cartoon. "Isabella, do you want a spanking?"

"Nope," she muttered, popping the P and never taking her eyes off of the flat screen.

"Tell me no _one more time_, young lady, and that's exactly what's going to happen," I threatened with squinted eyes.

I knew that she was long overdue for one, what with her disrespect and attitude, not to mention the furniture hopping, but I understood why she was so upset, so I was trying my best to understand the behavior associated with it. But, no matter how hard I tried, there was no rationalizing her yelling at me and Carlisle this morning.

My precious little angel was being naughty, and she was doing it on purpose.

"It's time for breakfast," I told her again.

She shook her head. "N-" she started, but abruptly stopped herself, as well as her casual bounces, looking at me with wide chocolate eyes.

"Get down from the couch. Now," I demanded, giving her my perfected stern face.

She whimpered slightly in defeat, then slumped down into a sitting position on the couch, her knees curled up to her chest.

"No, Isabella. _Off_ the couch. It's time for breakfast," I repeated.

She scowled down at the coffee table. "Nooo…" she whined, then immediately gasped and let it turn into a cry when she realized what she had just said.

I was by her side in a flash, not needing to hide my vampiric abilities from her anymore. She gave a little gasp when she saw me appear before her instantly, but I ignored it, choosing instead to reach down, hook my hands underneath her shoulders, and lift her from the couch.

When she was standing in front of me, turned slightly to the side, I firmly swatted her ass and repeated, "_Off_ the couch, Isabella."

She cried out at the sharp contact, rubbing her watery chocolate eyes with a small fist before turning to face me. "Owwwie…Edward, I don't want breakfast b'cuz I don't wanna talk to your daddy when I'm du-uuunn," she told me through her cries and a slight hiccup.

I wrapped my hand around her tiny fist then, and sat down on the couch, then began to try and carefully guide her body to bend and lay across my lap, but she instantly protested, promising vehemently that she would 'be good'.

Those protests were met with my silence and another swat to her ass.

"Are you really? Are you going to be good?" I challenged.

"Y-yeessss…" she sobbed.

"Then be a good girl and _do as you're told_, Isabella. Lay over my lap and do it now," I demanded.

When she only began to cry louder, I spanked her again, then gripped her elbow and pulled her thin form over to lay across my lap. She finally gave in, resigned to her fate, and turned on her side, curling herself around my midsection and burying her face in my shirt, squirming around a bit. I placed a cool hand to the small of her back and held her still, but furrowed my brow when I heard the familiar sounds of her stomach growling, begging for food.

I would have to make this quick.

"I know that you don't want to go to therapy angel, but you need to. You also need to do as your told. Telling me 'no' for the past half hour and ignoring your rule about the furniture only served to get you in trouble, Isabella. It did _not_ help you get your way. I want you to remember that. You are going to eat your breakfast, and then you are going to go to that damn therapy session," I informed her, my tone one of finality.

"Nooo…" she cried into my jean-clad hip.

I subtly shook my head. "There's that word again," I told her pointedly, landing the first swat to her pajama-clad bottom.

Four swats later, I hooked my thumb into the waistband of her purple shorts, then slid them down the backs of her thighs, always keeping a keen ear out for my family. If I thought that one of them was going to be making an appearance anytime soon, I would have kept this punishment fairly light , but they were nowhere to be seen and Isabella had broken two rules this morning. She would be getting an additional five swats to her bare bottom, as well.

I was not surprised to see her reach out a quick hand behind herself in an effort to cover her rounded pink flesh. I just nodded to myself, still expecting this instinctive reaction from my little girl, and gently wrapped my index finger and thumb around her small wrist, then held her hand to the small her back.

"No," I scolded with a sharp smack, knowing that I would have to work on that particular rule with her for a while.

"Ow!"

"You keep your hands out of my way, Isabella," I reminded her.

"B-but Edward, owwwieee…" she cried, enduring five more quick smacks to her tender, naked bottom.

I gently slid her soft cotton panties and shorts over her sore skin, then immediately hooked my hands under her shoulders and lifted her to me as I stood from the couch.

I could sense that my mate's food was getting cold, so I started in the direction of the table where I knew her breakfast was waiting. Her growling stomach urged me to put her nourishment first on my top list of priorities at the moment; it _immediately_ trumped my anxiety and the need to wipe away her tears due to a freshly spanked bottom.

She cried and mumbled the word 'owwie' several times on our way over to the dining room table.

I sat down in my usual seat, and positioned Isabella so that she was sitting in my lap with her legs dangling off to the side. I slid her plate and cup of milk across the tabletop over to us, and picked up her fork, setting it on the side of her plate next to the eggs.

I grabbed her napkin and made quick work of wiping the tears away from my little girl's flushed cheeks, then told her to blow her nose when I was done. She did, eventually setting the soiled napkin off to the side when all the wet mess was gone.

The only comfort I could offer her sore bottom was my cold lap, as I was not going to take the time to rub the hurt out for her right now.

She needed to eat, and she needed to eat _now_.

I picked up her fork, stabbing and gathering some eggs with the sharp edges, then brought the odd yellow food up to her lips. "Eat," I instructed.

Her curious chocolate eyes locked with mine as she opened her mouth slowly. Fractionally.

I fought my frustration with her sudden timidness and remained calm as I slid the utensil into the small opening between her pouty pink lips.

She bit down, scraping the food off of the fork with her teeth as I withdrew it from her mouth.

_Good girl._

While she chewed, I cut off a piece of waffle with the side of her fork, then brought that to her mouth as well.

She swallowed. "Edward?"

"Yes?"

She furrowed her brow. "My owwie…" she whimpered pathetically, squirming around in my lap.

I nodded knowingly. "Mm-hmm…"

"Fix it," she mumbled to me.

_Aw._

I gave her a small smile and kissed her little button nose. "Eat, angel," I told her, then looked pointedly to the forked waffle hovering outside her lips.

She looked at it curiously. "What is it?" she muttered, expertly pronouncing all of her T's like pro this time.

My eyes grew a bit wide with that question, and it threw me off guard. "Um…it's a waffle," I informed her quietly.

"A waffle…" she repeated in a whisper, gazing at the oddly shaped piece of bread in front of her.

"Yes," I confirmed.

"Hmm…" she hummed, reaching out a hesitant finger to touch the very tip of it.

"Good job on your T's, baby girl," I added as an after thought, watching her explore this apparently _new_ breakfast food.

_How odd._

I had seen my Bella eat waffles before. 'Eggo' seemed to be a common household name back when she still lived with her father.

Isabella looked at me and smiled. "I did good, huh?" she asked, a bit smug, while sticking her fingertip in her mouth to suck the syrup off.

I nodded. "_Very_ good."

She giggled. "I did good on my teeeeees…"

I kissed her cheek, then reminded her of the very important matter at hand. "Yes, now eat, angel."

She gave the waffle one last curious glance, then cooperated by opening up, so when I withdrew the fork this time, I set it down on the plate, then went about my duty as _owner_ and began 'fixing it'.

I kissed the silky hair that lined her soft temple and hugged her to me. She chewed as I placed another kiss to her rosy cheek, then began lightly trailing my cool fingertips up and down her back, along her spine, and her bare arm.

I knew that she needed lots of reassurance after a punishment because she's a girl, and girls are weird like that, so I did my best to offer what I could while simultaneously trying to make sure she consumed all of her food, and keeping her sore bottom on my cold lap.

When all of the eggs were gone, and only two bites of waffle were left, Isabella straightened from her curled up snuggled position against my chest, and proclaimed, "Edward, let's go play some fuckin ball."

"Marie, you have therapy after this…and I think you know that already," I said knowingly.

She stopped the subtle kick of her dangling legs and turned her head to face me. "So?"

I tilted my head to the side a bit, and gazed at her curiously, trying to get a good read on her current mood. "Hmm…_so_, after therapy we can go play some ball," I concluded.

I noticed how she bristled a bit at that statement. "Well, what if I wanna go play ball right now?" she asked, her unique attitude beginning to slip through, making the transition from feisty five year old to sassy seventeen year old, complete.

I straightened up and nodded, pretty damn sure of her mood now. "Well then, I'd have to say too bad, tough shit, and you're out of luck, babe," I quipped, not at all in the mood for her attitude right now. I needed a break after dealing with my rebellious little girl all morning.

She gave me a slight glare and cocked her head to the side a bit. "Well, what if I told you that _you're_ outta fuckin luck, 'cause I'm gonna go play anyway…"

I shook my head and gestured to her pajamas. "You are _not_ going outside like that," I stated in a firm tone.

She smiled and winked at me. "I'll get dressed first," she told me nonchalantly with a slight shrug.

Now it was my turn to glare at her. "No, Marie."

Amusement lit up her expressive chocolate eyes as she smirked and slowly nodded at me.

Realization dawned on me then. She was enjoying this. She was _trying_ to get a rise out of me.

_Fucking. Hell._

"Ohhh yes, Edward. I think that I'm going to go get dressed, in a fuckhott _sexy_ outfit by the way, and then I think I'll go outside. To play some motherfucking ball," she told me, quirking a small eyebrow at me in challenge.

"You will do _no_ such thing, young lady-"

"Oh _yes_, I do believe I will," she shot back, standing from my lap now.

I stood with her, trying to reign in my anger.

I would _not_ play into this little game of hers, whatever it was. I would remain in control, damn it.

"Marie, you can go play ball for as long as you want _after_ therapy," I said in a last desperate attempt to reason with her.

She squinted her eyes up at me. "No," she said simply. "I think that I want to go play with my goddamn basketball for as long as I want right fucking _now_," she countered before she turned on her heel and casually skipped off towards the stairs.

_Goddamn it._

I took off after her, instantly appearing in front of her when she was half way up the first flight of steps. "No."

She gasped at my sudden appearance and took a step back. "Shit! Edward, it's not fucking fair-"

I scooped her up, just as if she were my five year old right now, and swatted her ass where it lay on my forearm. "I don't care."

She countered the swat with a slap to my chest, then clenched her jaw and screamed in the back of her throat, clearly frustrated. "I. Don't. Wanna. Fucking. Go!" she yelled at me.

I sighed, wishing that these therapy battles would lessen over time. I don't know how many more fits and protests I can counter before I begin protesting myself. I don't want her in that damn room anymore than she wants to be there. I was beginning to hate these therapy sessions, fully aware now that they were in place to take my girls away from me.

I ignored her violent outburst and pressed a cool kiss to her pink cheek, deeply saddened all of a sudden. "Shhh…" I whispered against it.

"Edward…" she breathed.

I kissed her cheek again, then skimmed lips to her ear, hugging her tighter to me. "Hello, my Bella," I whispered.

She sniffled and sighed after a minute, tightening her own hold around my neck. "Let me guess…" she mumbled. "Therapy."

I nodded and sighed.

Somehow, I knew that my girls would eventually retreat and force my Bella to endure the one thing that they absolutely refuse to deal with.

Again.

"Yep," I confirmed in a soft voice, massaging small circles into the tense muscles that I found between her shoulder blades.

After a minute, she reluctantly whispered back, "Okay."

I hugged her tighter to me as we approached the door to Carlisle's study. "Oh my Bella…I'm so sorry," I said softly.

She leaned back, taking the opportunity to gaze into my eyes. Her thin brow furrowed in the most adorable way. "For what?" she whispered curiously into the quiet hallway.

"That you have to do this all the time…every single time. That the girls never give you a break from it. That they can't seem to brave through a therapy session on their own," I explained quietly.

She subtly nodded. "It is to be expected," she said cryptically, biting her lip, as if she had known that this would happen all along.

Hell, she probably _did_ know. She'd been through this before. The 'others' probably recoiled away from therapy as well, forcing her to do it all on her own as a child. They probably came around sporadically, whenever they felt the need to express themselves, but only if therapy wasn't anywhere on the horizon.

Just like Isabella and Marie have been doing. Because _they_ are her others now.

I dipped my head and skimmed my nose along her throat, breathing in the enticing aroma of her. "I love you," I murmured reverently against her flesh, smiling when her pulsing heat immediately consumed my cold lips. She was blushing for me.

_Aw…my beautiful Bella._

"I love you, too," she assured me.

I kissed her warm lips then, greedily coating my senses in the incredibly sweet taste of her mouth before I turned the knob to my father's study.

My baby girl had been crying these loud, hiccupping sobs for the past four minutes and thirty six seconds and I couldn't fucking take it anymore. My body was practically shaking with pent up anxiety as I stood from my crouched position by the door and stormed into the room, going straight over to Isabella and enveloping her in my arms.

"Shhhh, my baby love…" I cooed softly in her ear as I swayed us from side to side.

I noticed Carlisle's irritated glare, and I glared right back at him over Isabella's shoulder. He saw this as me encroaching on his territory, but he had _my_ territory in his territory, so fuck him, I win.

I kept my little girl in my comforting embrace as she buried her face into the soft cotton covering my shoulder and continued to sob, inconspicuously wiping her nose on my shirt again. I made a mental note to change my shirt just as Carlisle began a conversation in our frequency.

"Son, she is _not_ going to make any progress if you continue to swoop in and save her every time she cries-"

"She was crying for _me_," I spat, interrupting him. "I am not going to stand idly by on the other side of that fucking door while my distressed mate cries and calls out my name," I informed him, daring him with a perfectly arched eyebrow to argue any further with me on the subject.

_She is **mine**._

"It was just a simple fit. She wasn't getting her way-"

"I don't care," I immediately countered, cutting him off with a sharp tone.

He gave an exasperated sigh and dropped it, resolving to patiently wait for me to calm Isabella down.

I wasn't stupid. I knew that I couldn't interrupt a therapy session without there being repercussions, but this was the _first_ time that I had done this. My Bella had only been aware for about two minutes before Isabella came back around, asking for me and getting upset when Carlisle told her that she couldn't see me until the session was over.

Eventually Isabella quieted her cries and sniffles, and I sat in my Bella's usual chair, making sure to keep my baby girl in my lap the entire time. I would stay here until she felt comfortable enough for me to leave the room again.

"Edward?" her small voice cracked.

I wiped her nose and cheeks with the tissues on Carlisle's desk. "Hmm?"

"I wanna draw…" she mumbled quietly to me.

I nodded and kissed her flushed cheek. "Okay, sugar," I murmured against her warm skin.

Carlisle handed me a blank sheet of paper and a pencil, along with some colored pens. I gave Isabella the paper, but kept the writing utensils on the edge of the desk so that she could reach for them at her leisure.

I watched as Isabella made little doodles on the paper with the pencil, followed by the blue pen, then the red. Soon, I noticed her calm state by detecting her regulated heart rate and her slow, even breathing, so I thought that now would be a good time to duck out and let her continue on with her scheduled therapy session.

"Are you okay now, sweetheart?" I asked, concerned.

She nodded, her hand never stopping it's grooved curves along the piece of paper that lay on her lap. "Mm-hmm…" she hummed.

I kissed her cheek again and gave her midsection a gentle squeeze, hugging her to me. "Alright angel love, I'll be on the other side of that door…" I trailed off quietly in a whisper to her ear.

She nodded distractedly. "Kay…"

"Okay."

I stood with her in my arms then, but quickly turned and placed her back in the leather seat, facing Carlisle. She fisted her blue pen and kept the doodle paper in her lap, turning her eyes to mine as I squatted down in front of her.

I lightly ran my fingertips along her bare arm. "I love you, pretty girl…" I trailed off softly.

"I love you too," she mumbled back.

"Be a good girl for me, okay?"

She sniffled. "Kay…"

I nodded, then leaned forward and gave her adorable button nose an Eskimo kiss before I stood and walked out the door.

As soon as the wood surface clicked shut behind me, I took my usual position on the floor, and watched through Carlisle's mind how he would approach his second attempt at a therapy session today.

Not even ten minutes in, and it was very apparent that he would be late for work today. Esme even took the liberty to call the hospital for him, stating that he had a family emergency to tend to. This was anything but, but I guess that excuse was as good as any.

Isabella and Marie had been pulling the old switcheroo on my father figure, completely evading his questions, and successfully dodging this thing called therapy.

"I don't like your ugly yellow hair," Isabella reminded him.

"Fuck your healing, Doctor Dad," Marie proclaimed.

"You're annoying," Isabella so kindly informed him.

"Wanna come to the fuckawesome fair this weekend?" Marie asked, obviously trying to change the subject at hand.

"If you don't quit bein a nosy bastard and let me draw my picture, then I'munna tell," Isabella threatened.

"Do you wanna play this hott new Mariokart game with me? My Peach is so badass and I rock so fucking hard on it. I'm winning at all the stages," Marie told him conversationally with a smug smile.

"I want my Edwaaard…" Isabella whined

"Have you been on the jumpy trampoline?" Marie asked at one point.

"It's _my_ jump-a-lene, you can't play on it," Isabella told him, immediately countering Marie's invitation a second later.

"Edward said that we could go to the fair soon, and I'm gonna go on all the super fast fuckawesome roller coasters…" Marie trailed off.

"Why's your hair so ugly? You should change it's color, mm-hmm," she told him with a little nod. "Make it like mine, b'cuz right now you look like a nigger-lovin kike, donchya know."

"Ooooh, and maybe there will be funnel cakes," Marie added as an after thought.

"Daddy has hair like yours and he's ugly too," Isabella stated.

_Oh dear god…_ was Carlisle's exasperated thought as he sat there and stared at my rapidly alternating mate.

I quirked a small smile, knowing from experience that they were playing with him. Testing him.

"I wanna go back to La Push and finish what little Isabella started…knock the rest of that bitch's teeth out," Marie told him, gently cupping her jaw where the bruise was quickly beginning to fade.

"Yah-huh, and if we go there, then I'll finally get'ta fuck Jacob Black's tight little asshole and make him my bitch. He should know better than to talk to Bella like that," Isabella added, smacking her lips together.

"Mmm, my pretty Bell doesn't want your therapy, doc," Marie reminded him with a smirk.

"Yah-huh and Bella and my Edward wanna keep me forever and ever so that I can sparkle n' shine one day too, so just _stop it_," Isabella told him with an adorable glare.

"Carlisle…" my Bella mumbled then.

His eyes widened a bit and he immediately nodded at her in recognition.

"My Bell is tryin to come out and seeeee you," Marie's voice lilted at him as she cocked her head to the side.

"But I'm not gonna let her," Isabella proclaimed with a shake of her head and a small giggle.

"Carlisle…" was her faint whisper as my Bella began to blink furiously then.

After a minute, the blinking stopped, and I saw that she had an adorable scowl composed on her face. "I. Want. Edward," she stated, her child-like tone one of finality now.

"Carlisle…" my Bella mumbled again.

_Oh, this is interesting_ he thought.

"Bella," he called out, speaking for the first time since I left the room and using his authorative tone of voice.

"Carlisle," she whispered back, her thin brow furrowing in deep concentration.

"Bella, stay with me," he coaxed in a strong voice.

"Ok-kay…" she stuttered in her weak one.

It took three minutes and fourteen seconds, but my Bella was able to win that awareness battle with her alternates and stay around long enough to make a substantial effort to begin today's therapy session.

I smiled, suddenly so proud of her.

_My Bella._

BPOV

_What the hell - what are you **doing**?_

**Getting us outta therapy** Isabella explained, as if it should have been obvious.

**Yeah, Bell - let's blow this joint** Marie suggested, adding in her commentary.

I subtly shook my head, rolling my eyes, then squarely looked into Carlisle's gold ones. "Let's do this, shall we? I know I'm going to lose this fight sooner or later. They are being very adamant on this 'no-therapy' thing today," I told him, folding my knees up under myself, trying to get comfortable.

I noticed then, that I had a piece of paper on my lap with doodles drawn all over it.

**It's pretty, huh?**

_Um, sure._

I placed the colorful sheet on Carlisle's dean desk, then looked at him with raised eyebrows, silently questioning whether he wanted us to continue or not, because honestly, I was all for their idea to skip out on therapy today. I was sick of doing it. It's been the _only_ fucking thing that I've done in like, two weeks.

_Ridiculous._

Isabella started inadvertently flooding my mind with all sorts of memories then, and I was suddenly very, _very_ eager to begin today's session. I had to talk about it. About _all_ of it.

Carlisle's gaze on me became concerned. "Are you sure, Bella? I mean, we can still do a session today, and I'll be here as long as you need me to be…even if your awareness is erratic right now, I'll sit here and wait for you to come back around so that we can continue…" he trailed off his assurances.

I nodded. "Yes Carlisle, I'm sure. I, uh…I have _a lot_ to talk about," I said, surprised when my voice came out sounding strained, clearly conveying all of the pent up anxiety that I was beginning to feel.

_Fuck. Isabella, stop._

**Stop what?** she muttered innocently.

I sighed, then began to soothingly rub my right temple, feeling the familiar ache there.

"Okay dear, go ahead. Talk to me," he gently urged as he opened up his trusty leather journal and clicked his gold pen into place.

I nodded and wasted absolutely no time. I just started talking, desperately needing to get these horrible things _out_ of my fucking head.

_"Why isn't he hitting us?" Isabella asked.  
"I don't know," I whispered back.  
"Maybe he's waiting for a special time to kill us."  
"He's probably waiting for Mommy to leave town."  
"Prolly," she agreed._

"At first, I thought that it was only because I'd been in the hospital that Jim wasn't hurting me. When I had come home after being stabbed with the poker at Christmas time, there was a big hero's welcome for me. Susannah came with her mom…it was her first time ever in my home. She marveled at the beautiful house I lived in. But in the night, I could hear terrible fights between Mom and Dad. I could even hear my name being mentioned amongst all the shouting. I don't know what transpired between them, but I do know that a miraculous thing happened. The physical abuse against me stopped. It wasn't permanent, but any means…barely temporary, as a matter of fact, but I was grateful for the peace, no matter how short-lived it was. It embarrassed me the way Mom would take my clothes off every night, then turn me around and look at me before telling me to get ready for bed. She never asked me anything, she would just look and examine intently, then lightly blow on my neck or tickle me. She stayed home more often, and she became the one to tuck me and Bobby into bed at night. After dinner, she would come outside to play with us; games like freeze tag and hide and go seek were some of our favorites. Sometimes Joey would come out and suggest a game of baseball with some of the neighborhood kids and Bobby, and Mom would leave Daddy in the house to play either the pitcher or the umpire, because nobody wanted those boring positions. We all wanted to run and play, not stay still in one spot, so Mom took on that duty and Joey was always very grateful. For the first time in my life, I wasn't in pain. I must have eaten better without the constant hurting, because I began to plump out, and my cheeks were getting a little chubby. I remember Mom commenting that I finally looked as a little girl should; with rosy cheeks and cute, dimply smiles. I was no longer the tiniest girl in school."

_There was a terrible scene at our house when Mom fired Maggie, our maid. She begged and cried, pleading with Mom about her situation as a single mother of six, and Daddy ranted and protested, shoving Mom against the wall, stating that she didn't make the decisions in the household. My mother rose above it all though, barking out words in a loud commanding tone, things like "guilt of silence". I ran into the orange trees in the backyard and hid from the emotional confrontation. Mommy hired Ruth, an attractive middle-aged woman, to be our maid. Bobby and I decided that she must be expensive since she spoke well and dressed elegantly. She wasn't as good as Maggie at cleaning, but she was sweet. She let me help cook things in the kitchen. When we came home from school, she was there with us until Mom returned home from work. If she was late, Ruth stayed with us, acting as if it was no inconvenience at all. Jim cried and stayed in his room a lot. Bobby said that Ruth was probably hired by Mom to make sure Daddy didn't hurt us. I still wasn't sure what Mom knew, because she had never asked me, but it did seem as though Ruth was more bodyguard and nanny, than maid. We were certain of our guess when Mom hired a cleaning lady to come three times a week. We began to feel safe with Ruth around. Bobby and I didn't even care that Daddy was in his room all the time. One day, we could hear him sobbing behind the door. Ruth tried to distract us, and eventually demanded that we go outside to play. When we came back inside, thirsty from running around and exploring the woods just beyond our backyard, we saw that she was in our parent's bedroom with him and she was getting frustrated with his German language and his shouting and sobbing. She couldn't comfort him. Later that night, Mom couldn't control his crying either. After some hushed whispers between the two of them, Ruth stayed to give us our bath and tuck us in while Mommy left to take Daddy to the hospital. Jim was gone for two weeks. To have full rein of the house without him around gave me a delightful sense of freedom. I could run in the great expanse of the hallway. Bobby and I slid down the carved banister. We jumped down the laundry shoot from the second floor to the first. I took a flashlight down to the horrible basement and saw for the first time what it looked like, without fear of the door swinging closed behind me. We even played with the intercom system and shouted in the living room just to hear the echo. Isabella kept telling me not to trust this newfound freedom. Ruth was never affectionate or playful, but she was very tolerant towards us and she cooked wonderful meals. Ruth gave us permission to watch television while Daddy was away. We were sure that the privilege would be taken away when Dad came home, but it wasn't. Mommy went out and bought TVs for both of our bedrooms, saying that she was tired of the cartoons playing in the living room. We were secretly disappointed when Mom said that Daddy was coming home from the hospital. He arrived looking pale and thin, with what looked like burn marks on his temples. Bobby asked him about the marks, and he said that it was from electric shock treatments. That sounded terrible to us and we felt sorry for him. Mommy worked a late shift after she brought him home, so he made us sleep in the bed with him, saying that he was scared to be alone. We nodded and ran to our rooms to grab our sleepover stuff. I grabbed my pink Strawberry Shortcake blanket, and Bobby got his green Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles one, then grabbed a book from his shelf to read to Daddy until he fell asleep.  
"Come here, Isabella," he commanded with outstretched arms once we had crawled up onto the bed beside him.  
I smiled, overjoyed that Daddy actually wanted to cuddle with me. I eagerly crawled into his awaiting arms, and he wrapped me in a warm, enveloping hug, then kissed the top of my head. Isabella was screaming at me to get up and leave, while Sunshine yelled at her to "shut up" and to "stop trying to interrupt the cuddles", but I ignored them both as Bobby began reading the book from his sitting position beside us. Daddy fell asleep before Bobby made it three pages in, but he didn't mind. He kept reading until I started to doze off as well, then closed his book and snuggled in beside me, draping his small arm over my waist. We whispered our agreement to each other that we were both relieved Daddy wasn't crying anymore. I prayed and hoped that Daddy would remain nice as I nuzzled my cheek against his warm chest and drifted off to sleep._

"Not even a week later, Dad was back to his old self and flew us out to visit our grandmother…or, _his_ mother. She didn't want us to call her 'grandma', or 'granny'. She wanted to be called by her first name, Olga. She had visited us before, but we had never been out to her house, which was in San Mateo, just south of San Francisco…"

_Olga frightened us. She was very formal and proper and Bobby and I knew instantly that we were going to hate the visit. We became the model children, turning into the quiet robots that Jim had trained us to be. We rode the trolly cars in San Francisco, walked on the Golden Gate Bridge, and went to the zoo, but it was all an ordeal. Olga had her meals exactly at six o'clock on the dot . Lace doilies covered the arms of all her chairs and sofas, and if we didn't sit quietly and carefully, they would slip off, and she would slap us. Isabella glared at her a lot. Olga never laughed and she had no toys or games for us to play with. She did own a television, however, and every night she would let us watch it. Having never seen some of the movies that she owned, we were very intrigued, but quickly became bored. We would rather be playing outside.  
"Now we know how Dad got crazy," Bobby whispered to me in the night.  
"She never even smiles," I whispered back.  
We were thrilled to go back home and find Mommy waiting for us. We ran through the front door, the screen door slamming behind us in our wake, and wrapped our small arms around her waist for a big hug. She was a sight for sore eyes.  
"Go pack up some more clothes, kids. We're going to the beach for two weeks with Granny Hadassah!" she exclaimed with a bright smile.  
We squealed and giggled in our excitement as we raced off to our rooms, making it a game of who could pack for the beach the fastest. I remember that I won because Bobby had to search for his swimming trunks in the laundry room._

Carlisle gave me a gentle, encouraging smile, but I didn't smile back. We were just getting started.

"I remember when my Granny got sick. It wasn't that long before Jim got caught and was sent to prison. A lot of things happened that year. Congestive heart failure was the label that the doctors gave her. Her breathing was labored and her fingers were a deep purple-blue. As soon as we could have it arranged, Granny moved into our home. I'm not sure why she moved in with us, and not Charlie. I imagine it was because he was always so busy with his Chief work, and she loved my mom just as much as she did her son. I also think that she wanted to spend her last days with me and Bobby. She loved being a mother, but she absolutely adored being a grandmother..."

_Daddy gave her my bedroom, thinking that it would upset me, but I was thrilled to have Granny for a sleepover. Jim scowled at the beaming smile that I gave him when he informed me of the new sleeping arrangements. Isabella stuck her tongue out at him. He busted her ass. Mom hired a nurse to come and take care of her, but within days, Daddy fired her. Another nurse was hired, only to be fired again. Granny Hadassah's health deteriorated rapidly. Fluid began collecting in her abdomen and ankles. The doctor made a house call and let me stay in the room while he aspirated some of the fluid to help Granny breathe. I told the doctor that I was a big girl and that I would take care of my granny. He looked down to where I stood tall and proud, up to his waist, and smiled softly at me, remarking that I was very adorable and helpful. He showed me how to put the nitroglycerin tablets under her tongue and how to bathe her. Probably because neither of my parents were there, he spoke to me as if I were an adult. Granny became bedridden within a week of coming to stay with us. She lay in my big four poster canopy bed, looking tiny and frail, except for her big stomach. She ate almost nothing. Daddy never took care of her at all. Without the nurses, who were fired, or Ruth, all of the health care fell onto me. Mom was angry at Daddy for firing the nurses, saying that I was too young to take care of an old dying woman, but I cried and begged to be allowed to do it. Mom, out of desperation, agreed. She had an extra bed brought into the room for me, so that I could sleep next to Granny in case she had chest pains or needed anything in the night. Granny was weak, but for the next two weeks, we giggled and she told me stories. She told me how babies were born and what it was like to be a mother. She kissed me and stroked my hair as I lay in the bed next to her. When I look back at that time, I realize that it was she who was taking care of me. We were like two lone travelers on a secret journey, sharing each other. I don't remember anyone else during that period of time. I don't remember leaving her to go play. She was filling my loneliness with her loving. She told me how wonderfully well I did things for her, always praising me and how I was 'so helpful'. I never remember her complaining, even when she had to struggle to breathe. I bathed her, brushed her hair, and brought her meals, which she hardly touched. She perspired a great deal, and every evening, Mom would come up and help me change out her sheets, then we would sit her in a chair and Mom would join our ongoing party. The only time I got banished from the room was when the rabbi came to visit Granny. She liked to talk with him alone. Soon, Granny had some violent chest pains and got acutely worse. She lay in bed panting for air, barely able to speak or move. She no longer ate. She drifted in an out of sleep and we didn't giggle together anymore. We were all very upset. Sunshine and Isabella tried to get in extra snuggles with her, and Joey would place reverent kisses to her forehead. Sophie would read her stories and stroke her stringy gray hair. The doctor came and said that he would respect her wish to die at home; she never would consent to go to a hospital. He showed me how to regulate the oxygen, how to turn Granny in bed and rub her back so she wouldn't get sores. I remember the loose skin that was paper thin as I rubbed it. She was too weak to get up to go to the bathroom, so I brought her a bedpan. None of this seemed alarming to me. I adored my Granny, and Sophie was intrigued to see up close and personal what death was like for a human being. I remember she tried to prepare me for her death. She whispered her gratitude and love messages to me. Even too weak to eat, she would pat the sheets, inviting me to come lie on the bed next to her. Her eyes cherished me. Her fingers touched me lightly. She told me that she was going to die, but that her life had been full and was now finished. Her only sadness was in leaving me. She said she knew that Jim hadn't treated me well, and that her son hadn't been there for me, and it broke her heart. As she said that, I thought how little she knew of what I really lived through. Even in death, I could not tell her, but I cried, and with a shaky hand, she wiped the tears from my face. She kissed my eyes. I was lying in my bed next to Granny, when I heard her breathing change. It was a slow, rattling breath. I went over to her and turned on the light. I couldn't rouse her; she was in a coma. Life was confusing after that. Charlie, who had almost never come to our home, arrived. The doctor and the rabbi came, too. Mommy sat by Granny's bed with Charlie, and I felt like an outsider. I wanted everyone out of Granny's and my room. She and I belonged together, she just couldn't die. But she did. It took Granny Hadassah two days and two nights to die. Charlie banished me from the room and I screamed and sobbed, throwing a fit as I lay next to Bobby in his bed that night. I was angry at being sent away and angrier still, to be losing what I felt was a big piece of my life. I loved my grandmother with an intensity that was in proportion to my deprivation and my need. I thought my heart would break. I cried the whole day she died, the tears never stopped. Charlie tried to comfort me, but I barely knew him. Jim took over, practically ripping me out of Charlie's arms and enveloping me in his own. He coaxed my head down to his shoulder, then started shushing me, rubbing and patting my back, calling me 'Princess'. He was practically flaunting his 'fatherness' of me in front of my real father with an evil glint in his eye. To an outsider, he was the doting, loving Daddy, comforting his little girl, but I knew better. His grip was too tight, his pats a bit hard, and he whispered, "She was just a dirty old Jew" into my ear._

I sniffled, noticing the tears streaming down my cheeks and reached for a tissue from the box that lay on Carlisle's desk. "Um, I don't remember her funeral, or if there even was one. I was constantly dissociating for a while after that from the pain and loss of Granny. I dissociated one time and found myself in my bed with a brain concussion and scraped up knees. My vision was blurry and I kept vomiting…"

_Bobby came and sat down on my bed when he saw that I was awake. "You deliberately rode your bike in front of a car. I saw you," he told me.  
"I don't remember doing that," I whispered into the quiet room.  
He glared at me while wiping a cool rag over my forehead. "Are you trying to kill yourself?"  
I shrugged. "I don't know. I really don't remember doing anything like that. Please don't tell on me…" I pleaded.  
He softened his gaze. "Do you think I would? Haven't I always taken care of you? You scared the hell outta me today."  
"I'm sorry, Bobby."  
He nodded and clicked a button on the remote, turning on Nickleodean, then lay down beside me on my canopy bed. I missed a week of school watching TV and waiting for my vision to clear and the headaches to subside. I laid in bed and wondered what had happened and if Isabella or one of the others had chosen to die._

"There were many things about myself that I didn't understand…like the fact that Isabella and the others always seemed to want to run away from home. The idea was very intriguing, but I didn't know where we would go. Bobby fueled the fire for this fantasy. He had read Huckleberry Finn and said that we could get lots of ideas from that book. There was always a fantasy going on in my mind…of a better place, a better family. A family who liked little girls and who always wanted to cuddle them. I was so caught up in the enticing idea of it all, that I never actually thought that I would freak out when the opportunity to leave finally came, but I did…"

_One day, Daddy said to me, "How would you like to go live in Germany? My cousins want to adopt you."  
Panic ran through me. Life here was awful, but at least it was familiar. I knew Daddy's relatives were Nazis. I suddenly wanted my mom.  
"Please, Daddy, don't send me away!" I begged.  
Later that day, I snuck into my parent's bedroom and found that there were letters from Germany on his desk. Only one letter was in English, so I read that one, while Isabella read the others. They talked about raising me as a good German and keeping the bloodlines pure. Obviously, Jim had failed to tell them that I was half-Jewish. Lying on the desk, were also passports and other documents. I was distraught by the possibility of leaving school, and never seeing Mommy or Bobby ever again. In one of the most assertive things that I've ever done, I wrote a letter to the cousins who knew English, begging them not to take me, that I was half-Jewish, All American, and had no desire to be German. I told them that I would hate them if they made me go.  
"Good for you," Isabella congratulated me. "It's 'bout time you did somethin to defend yourself. You tell all those Nazi fuckers that you'd rather be dead than eat any of their ucky sauerkraut. Tell 'em we'll burn their house down."  
"Okay," I agreed._

"And that's exactly what I did. I don't know if Jim ever found out that I wrote to his cousins, but after the next letter arrived from Germany, the subject of me leaving was dropped."

I began to distractedly run my fingers through my hair, absently fidgeting when Isabella whispered to me about Mr. Hammy, the hamster.

_Oh god…_

I sniffled and gazed at Carlisle through sudden blurry eyes. My voice cracked when I spoke and I wiped a tear that had already managed to fall. "I-in second grade…um, someone gave me two pet hamsters and a cage…"

_I took very good care of them. Mommy said I could keep them in the garage. Before long, the two hamsters produced a family and I had about eight furry friends, much to my delight. Bobby and I would play with them after school, making houses and runways out of blocks for them. We would lie down and let them crawl all over us, and Isabella giggled at the feeling, despite my sneezing fits. One day, in a fit of anger, Daddy came out to the garage with a big soup kettle filled with water. He put the hamsters in the water, to the wailing protest and Bobby, Isabella, and me.  
"Hamsters are filthy fucking animals, and they carry diseases," he said. "We must kill them quickly."  
My eyes grew wide as Isabella screamed, "No!"  
"Daddy, no, please…Daddy, no! I'll find another home for them if I can't keep them. Please don't kill them! They're my friends!" I screamed out amongst Isabella's sobbing.  
He went to grab the lid and Isabella lunged for him, grabbing onto his arm to hold it back, but he flung her off easily and our small body went flying into the wall.  
"Nooo…" I cried desperately.  
Daddy held a lid that was smaller than the soup kettle. When all the hamsters were swimming around with a panicked look in their eyes, he grabbed one of my pigtails and yanked me over to the kettle on the floor.  
"You mustn't let them suffer, Isabella," he told me in a rough, accusing voice, as if all of this was somehow **my** fault. "Press the lid down in the water and they will die quickly."  
"No! Nooo, Daddy. Please, nooo…" I cried, pleading with him.  
Bobby started crying then, and ran out of the garage. Daddy forced the lid down on the hamsters for a few seconds, then raised it up. The hamsters were all wet, sputtering and uselessly pawing at the slick sides of the kettle.  
"You mustn't let them suffer," he barked at me again, looking me dead in my blurry, watery eyes, as he plunged the lid down again.  
I screamed and frantically reached forward, bending down and trying to pry his finger's grip from the lid, but he reached back with his free hand and quickly swatted my ass six times in quick succession, harshly scolding that I wasn't allowed to touch him. He threatened to throw me across the room into the wall again. When he raised the lid this time, a few of the babies were dead, but the bigger hamsters were still swimming. He grabbed my small hand in his large one and forced me to put my palm to the lid's surface as he pushed it down again. I felt the icy cold water as I plunged the lid deep, and held it down for a long time, not wanting to see the panic in my friends' eyes again. When I finally lifted the lid, I was sobbing loud, hiccupping sobs, and they were all drowned. I hated Jim at that moment.  
"Let's kill him. Plunge his face into ice-cold water until he turns blue and dies," Isabella advised me.  
She turned her cold, glaring eyes on him while I continued to cry, but he just simply stood back up and left the garage. Bobby wanted to bury all the dead hamsters. He couldn't stop crying, and neither could I. We found a shoe box and buried them outside next to Bootsie and had a funeral service, marking the grave with a little wooden cross. There were so many crosses at the gravesite. Daddy had cooked a bunny that Bobby had been given in the oven. There were crawdads we had caught in a pond that he dumped in our bathwater, swimming all around us until they died in the heat. There was a baby bird that we had dropper-fed when it fell from it's nest, and Dad threw it down on the kitchen floor, stating, "We mustn't let things suffer."_

"_We_ suffered," I insisted, bringing another tissue up to wipe my left eye. "After the hamsters, I never accepted anymore pets. I didn't want to love anything and have it killed in front of me again. There had been too many tears and too many little dead things that I had lovingly wrapped for burial. We had a funeral service memorized because we had it so often."

"Death was a preoccupation when I was young. My death had seemed real and repeatedly imminent. Daddy had made me sit still in a chair time after time and read Bible verses to me. They were usually the scary ones, about hell and unrepentant souls. I feared God and I feared death, somehow having gotten the message that because I was Jewish, I wouldn't get to go to heaven, yet at Sunday school, they talked about Jesus loving little children, and how being baptized was a way into heaven. Just after the death of my hamsters, we were invited to a church service by one of Jim's friends..."

_It was communion Sunday and the pastor was talking about the bread being the flesh of Christ, and the wine being the blood of Christ. I sat spellbound in horror as all of these seemingly nice people symbolically ate and drank Jesus. Tears were streaming down my face. How often had Daddy talked about cooking and eating me? 'The Recipes of Isabella' was what he liked to call it. I identified to such an extent with the symbolic eating, that I was upset for days. Poor Jesus…no one loved Him, either._

Carlisle's gold pen continued to scrawl across the pages of his journal as I easily filtered over to the next memory stored in Isabella's exposed mind.

"About a month before Halloween one year, the topic of discussion at school was who would have a Halloween party at their house…"

_One boy said, "Bella, your house is huge and scary, why don't you have a party? None of us have ever been there."  
Ice water ran through my veins at the thought of bringing other kids to my house. Daddy was too unpredictable. My school life and my home life were as isolated from each other as I could purposefully make them. My other states of being, the lapsed memories, where I had to lie to make up for what I couldn't remember, isolated me even further. My life had become a juggling act of lies, and I certainly didn't share my secrets with the kids at school. Even walking home by myself, I would feel the sense of foreboding as I turned down my street. I hated the big house with the dark, painful secrets. Bobby and I let no one into our world of terror.  
Another friend piped in, "That's a great idea, to go to Bella's house."  
The group momentum upped the enthusiasm and pressure. I wished for death before exposing my friends to my other life.  
"I can't have a party," I muttered.  
"Of course you can. You have the biggest house in town. It'll be great!"  
Even Bobby heard in his class that everyone wanted a Halloween party at our house. The more I objected, the more intrigued my friends became. I eventually asked Mom and Dad at dinner one night if I could have a Halloween party. Mom agreed, saying that it would be 'fun'. Bobby said that he would help me make the haunted house. Daddy said nothing. I went ahead and invited my friends, telling them it was a costume party and to be prepared for a haunted house. I sounded enthusiastic, but it was all false bravado. I lay awake at night wondering how Daddy would act. My only hope was to ask Mom to stay home and help with the party, so I did, and she said that she would certainly try her best to be there. Bobby and I spent two weeks working on our haunted house. We put streamers and blue lights over the doors, and we borrowed a skeleton from a weird high school boy that Bobby knew. From a book in the library, Bobby got the idea for everyone to sit in a circle while someone recited a tale about a man being murdered and cut up and his parts passed around the group to be touched. In the dark, we would pass around bowls that had hard Jell-O for the liver, macaroni for brains, peeled grapes for eyeballs, and so forth. Bobby was very enthusiastic about this night of horror. He said he would help me and would recite the tale while everyone sat in a circle in our huge living room. Mom found us a record of Japanese music that sounded properly scary. Daddy helped us by buying refreshments and ingredients for our witches' tale. Isabella…well, I guess she helped by getting me the necessary make up for my Halloween costume. There was some money on the coffee table one day. Shiny quarters, dimes, and nickels…a few crumpled up dollar bills. Isabella eyed it appreciatively, a devilish smile forming on her face.  
"Please, Isabella…please don't take the money. Don't get me in trouble," I pleaded.  
"I won't get you in trouble. We're smart, remember? We can say that the money fell on the floor and got lost, or that Blitzen knocked the table over again. Nobody will ever know," she reasoned.  
"But that's not honest," I admonished her.  
She rolled her eyes. "To hell with honest! We can take what we want to. We never have any money for toys, Bella. No one gives a shit about us."  
I subtly shrugged. "We can ask Mommy…"  
Isabella glared at me. "Mommy can go to hell. Fuck her."  
"But I don't want to steal!" I proclaimed, stomping my foot.  
"Then don't! You don't have to, I'll do it for us. I'm definitely the smarter one. I can sneak it, like always…"  
"I think you're awful."  
"Tough shit!" she spat, slamming her hand down on the table, near the five dollar bill. "I want to go buy some make up."  
And with that, she began scooping the coins and dollars off the coffee table and stuffing our newfound treasure in the pocket of our Strawberry Shortcake overalls, then ran out the door and grabbed Bobby's bike that lay on it's side in the front yard. It was a too big for us, so she couldn't sit on the seat. Instead, she had to stand on the pedals during the ride down the street to the Dollar Store. When we returned, with all kinds of make up compacts stuffed in our pockets; some paid for, some stolen, Isabella scurried up the steps to our bedroom and hid her new stash in the back of our sock drawer. We were never caught, and Isabella was very proud of herself. When the night finally arrived, Isabella had fun decorating our face, but I was a wreck. Daddy had been too quiet. The house was ready, but at the last minute, Mommy had to leave town for a big meeting. Fear suffocated me; my safety was leaving me. All of our friends arrived in various hilarious ghoulish outfits. It doesn't take much to rally up a group of second graders; they were all acting rowdy and silly in no time at all. The haunted house tour was a smashing success, with friends getting pushed into absolute blackness down the laundry chute and into the secret corridors that paralleled the hall upstairs. We marched everyone into the deep, cold cellar to Bobby's moans and groans. After refreshments, Bobby told everyone to sit in a big circle. Daddy had been out of sight the whole evening, but he would bring us the bowls of Jell-O and grapes at the appropriate times. Bobby blackened the room except for the coals glowing in the fireplace at the end of the living room. In a low whisper, Bobby began his tale of horror. When we got to the parts of the body that were passed around, the boys got loud and the girls shrieked appropriately at the horror.  
A couple of boys laughed. "Ha ha. This is just a peeled grape, not a real eye. This ain't real brains."  
"I'll bet this is Jell-O," one boy challenged then.  
"I dare you to bite it," said another.  
Just then, the lights flicked on and everyone began to scream.  
"Ucky," Isabella whispered to me.  
In the bowls were real brains, liver, eyeballs, a pancreas, and other cow parts. Blood was all over our hands and some kids had blood on their costumes. Daddy had gone to the butcher shop, and without telling us, had exchanged our fun parts for the real animal anatomy. The girls were jumping and screaming at their bloody hands. The boys were desperately trying to be brave.  
Bobby saved the day by laughing and shouting, "Haha! I fooled you! Happy Halloween!"  
He acted like he had pulled the world's biggest prank. Some of the boys began to laugh, but the girls were all upset and tried to race to the sink to wash the blood off. I wanted to die. My worst fears of Dad destroying my party were realized. Now my friends would know the world I lived in. I was certain no one would ever speak to me again. The party broke up immediately. I have no recollection of the evening, since I dissociated. I don't know who took over, I just know that it wasn't me. The next day I faked being sick, feeling too humiliated to go to school. Bobby came home and said all the kids were talking about the funny Halloween joke. I felt forever in Bobby's debt.  
He was enraged by what Daddy had done, though. "He oughta be locked up somewhere. We're lucky no one found out he's a whacko."  
"He did it because he hates me," I said quietly.  
"He did it because he is sick in the head, Bella," he corrected. "I hate his guts."_

The silent tears had stopped flowing, and I spoke in a subdued tone of voice now, suddenly feeling very tired, and liking Marie's idea of her taking over for me.

**But I'm not comin out while we're still in here, doll. Fuck that.**

I sighed. _Fine then._

Carlisle, oblivious to my internal conversation, gestured for me to continue at my convenience. So I did. "I remember feeling abandoned by my mom a lot when I was seven. She had been my savior, making sure to check me for injuries before bed and hired a nanny to be around while she was at work, but like I said - it didn't last long. After Ruth saw Daddy's craziness firsthand, before he went into the hospital that night, she quit when he came home and things went pretty much back to normal. It upset me, because…if she went through all the effort of checking me for injuries, hiring extra help, and actually taking Jim to the hospital, then she fucking knew something was up. She _knew_ something was going on, but her attentiveness only lasted for a month of two. It saddened me, but it pissed Isabella and the others off."

Carlisle nodded. "Mm-hmm, I understand. Do you have anymore particular memories of your past others from when you were younger, Bella dear? From what you told me before, they seem to be very interesting…you never know; any knowledge of them, no matter how small or insignificant, could be the missing puzzle piece for the problems that you're experiencing today," he told me.

I subtly nodded. "Um, yeah…I vaguely remember when Cassandra was created. There was a time when I was very sick. I was in the hospital, and it wasn't from a Jim-induced injury. I only remember two of the things that were wrong with me…a kidney infection and a stress-induced ulcer that bled. My legs were also hurt for some reason. I don't know why. I was either six or seven. I don't remember all of the details, just that I was in the hospital and that I didn't like it. There were barium milkshakes and enemas, X-rays and an ice-water-in-a-tube procedure of some kind to get the bleeding to stop. Little glasses of milk and Maalox were brought every hour, along with a steady delivery of Jell-O and custards. Mom wasn't around to come visit and read me bedtime stories this time, and I'm not sure why…probably a business trip, or something. Anyway, just when I was beginning to show some progress with the medications, and was getting comfortable with the people and hospital routines, Jim came and told me that he was taking me home. The doctors told him that I wasn't ready to go home, but he was adamant. He checked me out of the hospital against the doctor's orders…"

_I cried as I hugged Annie, my gentle, black pediatric nurse, good-bye.  
"This ain't right, child. You'd shouldn't be leavin'," she told me.  
I just nodded because I knew that, and we hugged for a long time as she stroked my long hair. Eventually we broke apart when Jim came storming into the room, demanding and asking why I wasn't dressed yet. Annie, with her warm, gentle hands, helped me out of my little pink hospital gown and got me dressed, all the way down to my flashing light sneakers.  
Roger, my doctor, was livid, but tried not to let it show, choosing instead to stay positive and encouraging like he always had with me. "I'm sorry that we can't stop your daddy from taking you home, Bella. I'm so proud of how well you're doing. Let's just hope that you continue your progress at home," he told me with a hopeful smile.  
"Thank you, doctor Roger, for being my friend," I told him while hugging onto his leg. I got his white coat all wet with my tears.  
Daddy brought me home without a wheelchair or any of the equipment I'd had in the hospital. I was fearful of what he had planned for me because he acted strangely the entire way home. When our car pulled into the driveway, I felt anxious knowing that this was not a good idea. Dad came around to my side of the car, and instead of picking me up and taking me inside, he grabbed my arm and half-dragged me into the house. Instead of elation at getting liberated from the hospital, I felt a sense of foreboding and worry that physically I could not cope with my life at home. Daddy dropped me onto my bed in a heap, then put some pillows under my head.  
"Daddy, I need my wheely-chair or crutches. How will I go to the bathroom?" I muttered in a small voice, suddenly very afraid because I had just spoken to him without permission.  
"We'll see about that," he muttered right back in a cold voice.  
He left my room then, and a few minutes later, Bobby came in.  
"I'm glad you're better, but you still can't walk," Bobby said, observing me. "What are you going to do here at home?"  
"I don't know, Bobby," I said, beginning to cry.  
"Dad's been talking to his angel, Bella. He's getting weird again," he told me with worried eyes.  
"God, I'm scared…" I whispered, tears streaming down my cheeks.  
After dinner, Daddy ordered Bobby out of my room. He pulled a chair up by my bed.  
"I need to talk with you, Isabella. God has commanded me to help you die. You have been suffering long enough. My angel will give me the strength to see us through these trying times," he told me in all seriousness.  
I gasped, wide-eyed. I knew that bitch, Lady Angel, would be the end of me. "Daddy, I'm getting better. I'm not throwing up blood anymore, and my legs will get better, I promise," I told him in a desperate, pleading tone.  
But Daddy ignored me and rose from his chair, then came and knelt by my bed in a praying position.  
He folded his hands and began to pray, "Dear Jesus, I give you this child. Please take her from me and end her suffering. Forgive her for her sins and her goddamn wickedness. For being a filthy Jew. She is ready to come home to you, Lord."  
I wasn't sure what Daddy was planning, but I was frightened. But even with the terror that I was feeling, I also became slightly passive, regressing in that moment, and trying to push away from reality by letting Isabella or one of the others take over.  
"Isabella, what I'm doing is an act of Christian fucking kindness. You will be with our Lord soon." He stood up, bent over me and kissed my forehead, "Good-bye Isabella."  
He walked out the door and I heard the lock click into the latch. I went to sleep that night, baffled by the whole farewell scene and suspicious that Dad would come back in my room and try to kill me. Nothing was improbable with Jim. In the morning, I needed help getting to the bathroom, which was beyond the locked door. I was no longer in the bedroom with the adjoined bathroom. That was Bobby's room now. I heard when Bobby left for school.  
"Daddy! Daddy, I gotta use the bathroom!" I shouted.  
There was no answer. I waited all morning. Around noon, I began to cry with the realization that something was very wrong. I had been abandoned and I feared that it was deliberate. I crawled from the bed and pulled myself along the floor to the door. I turned the knob. It was securely locked from the outside, just like over summer vacation. I banged on the door and shouted. No one answered and no one came. I had to go to the bathroom desperately. Just like in the basement, I pulled myself over to the corner of the room and relieved myself on the floor. I was crying. All day I waited, and still, no one came. Finally, I heard Bobby return from school.  
"Bella," Bobby whispered from outside my door. "Dad has the door locked and he won't give me the key. He says it's time for you to die."  
Isabella's instinct for survival suddenly overrode my fear of Daddy's revenge, and she abruptly came forth and exclaimed, "Bobby, he's crazy! Can you get me help?"  
Bobby began crying and I didn't understand what he said in response. In the hospital, I had been on several different types of medications. The sudden withdrawal from all the drugs had me shaky and nauseated. Perspiration wet my sheets in the heat of my room. There was a summer hot spell and my room was baking from the sun that hit the big windows. By night, my thirst was first and foremost in my mind. The drug withdrawal had made me vomit on the floor. I just leaned over the bed and watched as I retched onto the carpet. The taste of it intensified my thirst. That night, I could hear Daddy in the hall outside my door, talking to his angel and praying to God. I called out to him, but he just continued talking his nonsense, sometimes hollering, sometimes harshly whispering. By the next day, I was dissociating, escaping into my dream-like states. My apathy from the years of abuse overcame me. Instead of screaming or breaking windows for help, I lay there like a limp, lifeless doll, awaiting my death. I just didn't care anymore. About anything. Least of all, myself. I wanted death, and I wanted it to come quickly. Another night came and went. I heard Bobby yelling and crying. By the third day, the urine and vomit had turned my hot room into a complete hellhole. My wrinkled sheets felt like mountains on my perspiring skin. I drifted in and out of fevered sleep. Then there was the continual thirst….it was the supreme drive. There is no hunger when thirst is acute. I wished for the power to die. I wished Isabella could take me away. There was a cacophony of voices in my mind. Joey was angry. Camille was glad that we were dying. Sunshine was very passive; she had waited a lifetime to be taken care of. It was sometime during the course of these days that Cassandra came into existence. She was a mature personality with a calm, rational mind, who seemed to handle crisis well. She spoke in soothing tones to the group of us. I think she is the one who felt the desire to live. Sophie didn't care if we died. She kept babbling on about concentration camps, being completely useless.  
"Stop this right now," Cassandra said, commanding everyone's attention. "We are all thirsty, but we will make it out of this room. Why, when we recover, I will take you on the loveliest trip to Germany to meet my parents. You'll especially love my father, he's such a charmer, so lovely. My mother is a sweet lady, who smells of lavender and wears her sensible shoes while she paints watercolors on the countryside. She was born in Wales, you know…" Cassandra did have a tendency to talk in endless enthusiastic streams.  
I have no idea how many days and nights I lived in that hot yellow room. I felt surrounded by a sea of yellow. Yellow walls, yellow urine, yellow sheets. Yellow was hot. Yellow was pain. I was drifting in and out of consciousness, resigned to my impending death, when I heard Bobby banging on my door.  
"I called the cops, Bella! Hang on, I'll get you out!"  
I heard voices in the hall. Bobby's voice was screaming and angry, and Daddy was yelling. When the police arrived, Bobby had a butcher knife in his hand and was holding Daddy crouched against the wall, the sharp blade pressed to his jugular. He was crying and threatening to kill him. Incredulously, the police believed Dad's story, that a nine-year old Bobby had gone crazy, and attacked him with a knife, and that I had been very sick with the flu and he was about to take me to the hospital. Daddy was set free and Bobby was sent in a straightjacket to a mental hospital. No one believed his story about Daddy and he was kept locked up for an entire month. He missed a semester of school. Jim's sister even went to court to try and get custody of Bobby at this point - and lost at the hearing. I was too sick to be involved and attest to the abuse in the home, but my aunt had all sorts of documents. Later, Bobby said that they never even let him testify._

"The fact that Jim could get the police to believe him, shows again how violent abuse is so incredibly far from the minds of normal people, that they can't even perceive it where it actually exists. It also shows that Jim was calculatingly evil. He was not so crazy that he couldn't lie and carry on a believable conversation. With clear, light eyes, he could look a person in the face and lie. I was too close to death to hate him then, but I do now."

Carlisle nodded. "You are _so_ right, dear, and that tale is so…so intriguing, Bella. Very, _very_ fascinating and intriguing. It's amazing how different assets of yourself were so completely ready to give up, but then suddenly, this Cassandra person springs to life, giving everyone a sense of newly found hope and stability."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.

_Right. Cassandra, the savior. Whatever._

His golden gaze flicked over to the clock then, noticing that we had about three minutes left in the second hour of allotted therapy time. He didn't seem too excited to end it though…I mean, it's not like he was in a hurry, or anything.

"Is there anything else that you would like to add to today's session, Bella? Anything else that you feel you need to get off your chest?" he hedged with slightly raised eyebrows.

I nodded. "Yes," I blurted out.

He smiled softly while I instantly blushed at my sudden eagerness to point out this one last thing.

I cleared my throat. "Um, I mean…uh, yeah…" I trailed off, giving him a sheepish look.

He nodded, and gestured with a flawless hand that I should continue. "Go ahead, dear…"

I sighed and cleared my throat again, suddenly wanting some water, but ignored my new thirst and changed up my position to sit Indian style in the high-backed leather chair instead. I kept one hand in my hair, absently playing with the soft strands that I found there and subtly shrugged. "Well…okay, when Jim was caught after I was brutally sodomized by him, and he was sent to prison, it was a blessing, but just because I was away from him, didn't mean that I was away from abuse. When I was ten, and in the state mental hospital, there were incidents. About mid-stay, I became severely depressed…nearly comatose due to my therapy. I was in a constant state of confusion because of my alternate personalities. They were leaving me, and I didn't know why. I didn't talk for a long period of time, and just laid there in my bed. I avoided people and interaction of any kind as much as possible. I rejected visits from my mother…"

_An odd young man in a white jacket began visiting me in my room. I didn't know if he was an orderly, or a medical student, but it didn't matter to me. He brought me cups of icecream, and never said much as he stood and stared at me. He had short hair, acne scars, and wore glasses. I didn't like him, but there was nothing I could or would say to him during those strange non-conversational visits. One night I was sleeping and was abruptly woken up by a hand being clamped over my mouth. The hospital was quiet, it must have been in the middle of the night. I felt startled and confused. No one had ever given me medicine at that time. Something was clearly wrong. Then I recognized the guy with the acne-scarred face.  
He spoke in a loud whisper, "If you yell for help, I will kill you. Do you see this syringe?" he asked, holding it in front of my face. "It's full of narcotics and I'll overdose you if you don't lie quietly," he threatened.  
Terror rose in me as he set the syringe down and started taking off my pink Whinny The Pooh pajamas, exposing my body in the shadowed darkness. He picked the liquid-filled syringe back up and held the long needle in front of my eyes. Even on an unconscious level, the old experiences I'd lived through filled me with dread. I lay absolutely still, just waiting to be his victim. He put my hands in the hospital bed restraints. I didn't struggle. I felt the panic, but torture was familiar to me. Slowly, he began kissing my body, playing with my newly budding breasts. I mean…if you could even call them that. I was still basically flat-chested, didn't even own a training bra yet. But he kept licking and sucking on me, then biting me as he worked his way down my belly.  
"You have the face of an angel and a body that is driving me mad," he murmured. "But you're like all of them. You're all alike."  
I didn't know what he was talking about.  
My body was experiencing both pleasure and revulsion in the feather-light way he touched and kissed me. I felt the urge to vomit, but I held it back. Suddenly, he seemed to turn angry, and he lifted up a tongue depressor.  
"Open your mouth," he commanded.  
I opened my mouth and he wedged the wooden stick sideways between my back teeth, prying my mouth open. I felt the panic rise, not knowing what he was doing or why he was angry with me. He was breathing hard as he pulled down his pants and began rubbing his penis along my tiny abdomen and small breasts. He turned my head to face him and stuck his penis deep into my pried-open mouth. I gagged and couldn't breathe, he was going so deep. He jabbed in an out and around, suffocating me, gagging me, hurting me. I moaned out the beginnings of my cries, starting to struggle against my restraints. My nose began to run, and tears burned my eyes, trailing their way down my cheeks. Catching my breath quickly became my first priority, as I desperately tried to breath through his assault. Just when I thought I would pass out from lack of air, he ejaculated into my mouth. I choked and sputtered as warm semen squirted down my throat. As he withdrew his penis, I finally gave into that urge to vomit, coughing and choking to get air when I was done. The man untied my hands, hurriedly redressed me in my crumpled pink pajamas, and tossed the covers back on me without saying a word. He pushed my head into the vomit right before he left the room. I laid in the slimy mess for a long time. Silent tears continued to fall as I wondered why one of my alternates hadn't come to save me. Why I had to experience that alone. Most of them were gone, and I wanted to know why. Why did they go? Will they ever come back to help me? I needed them. Soon, Isabella's voice rang out, soft and clear in my head, and I smiled, comforted by the fact that she was still around. She wouldn't abandon me like the others had. She giggled every so often as she sang me a quiet lullaby and talked of things like Peter Pan, Tinkerbell and Never Never Land.  
I came back to reality when a nurse found me and said, "My goodness child, you threw up and you never even called me."  
I stayed silent, as usual, while she cleaned me up and ran warm water and shampoo all over my long brown hair. She changed my sheets and got me dressed in a light blue summer dress for the day, but she couldn't take away the memory of that night. He came several more times to have oral sex or, if there was any activity going on in the corridors, just quick, harsh fondling.  
"Your beauty drives me wild and you're not even really here with me," he said.  
I'm sure that he saw me as some kind of incompetent, brain-damaged object. I lay awake at nights waiting to see if the door would open. My life was valueless to me, existing in a damaged state and waiting to get hurt again. The man in white had bad breath, and on the two occasions that he climbed on top of me, his body odor gagged me. I hated him, but I did not resist. He no longer needed syringes to threaten me with, or restraints to hold me down. I merely lay there hating him, willing myself away as he did what he would do. Isabella hated him with a passion. She devised ways of killing him, taking pleasure in thoughts of sodomizing and dismembering him, beginning with that damn invasive penis of his. She wanted to carve him up slowly and listen to him scream. I remember that the thoughts in my head were hazy and inarticulate, but my emotional self and emotional duality remained intact. I was as aware and sensitive as an anemone in a tide pool. I wasn't like Isabella. She plotted and planned, but I worried. I worried that I would get pregnant. I wasn't certain if oral sex could cause pregnancy, but the hypothetical possibility of it in my mind was enough to make me sick with worry. I have no way of knowing how often this happened to me. It was probably only a few times, because I was in a hospital after all, but the anticipation and the horror of it, caused it to mushroom…made it seem like it occurred on a daily basis. One night, that pervert came into my room again and stripped me naked of my red and white Little Mermaid pajamas. He pulled my small body to the bottom of the bed and propped my legs up. They flopped apart, down to my sides, exposing my virgin center to his eyes, then his fingers. In a matter of seconds, he had his pants off and was standing at the end of the bed, intrusively rubbing the head of his penis up and down my tiny slit. Fear gripped me, because I knew what he was going to do. He was going to rape me. In my mind, I screamed for Isabella, knowing that I wouldn't be able to handle it, but she didn't respond, paralyzed by my fear. The second that her voice **finally** screamed back, "Kill him!", the door suddenly burst open, and there, standing with a look of consternation on his face, was a very young intern.  
"Goddamn it," he muttered distractedly as he flicked on the bright overhead lights.  
In a split second, his eyes focused on us and a look of fury overcame his features. He made a loud roaring noise as he charged forward and literally threw the pedophile up against the wall. He was yelling and hitting him, then hauled him out of the room. There were loud noises and lots of voices out in the hall.  
The intern came back into my room. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, little-bit," he said over and over again, using the nickname that all of the orderlies had given me, due to the fact that I was practically the only child in the ward, and that I was so tiny and small.  
He approached me slowly, knowing from experience that I was prone to violent and sudden outbursts. When he was positive that I wasn't going to kick him in the face, he reached down to close my legs, then gently scooped me up off the bed and stood me up in front of him. He squatted down, reaching for my cartoon pajamas that lay haphazardly on the floor, and began redressing me. He spoke softly to me the entire time, reassuring me that the bad man was gone now, and wasn't ever coming back. When he picked me up and put me back to bed, he made sure the blankets were tucked tightly all around me. I winced when he brushed some hair away from my eyes.  
His eyes widened a bit, scared that he had hurt me somehow. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, darlin'. He won't ever bother you again, okay? I promise you that," he told me before he seemed to let his anger get the better of him. He slammed his curled fist down on the mattress by my side. "Christ, why didn't you scream?" he yelled accusingly, looking me square in my vacant eyes. "Why didn't you cry? Damn it! That shouldn't have happened!"  
There was a big commotion of nurses, doctors and policemen after that, but I responded to no one. I just watched everyone from my far away hiding place._

I bit my lip, and softly fingered the sore spot on my jaw, just now noticing that it had gotten bruised somehow. "The obvious question _is_, why didn't I scream or shout or fight, right? Well, the answer lies in my years of torture; to resist is to be hurt worse. I, the Bella personality, simply learned to endure," I stated quietly.

_I hardly ate during my depression in the hospital. I didn't try to talk or watch the cartoons on television that the orderlies would turn on for me. I simply lay there and let my mind escape when it could. I had the warm, quiet place in my head where I could leave the hurt behind. I simply became Isabella and she lived life, so that I didn't have to. In retrospect, it's curious the way that Isabella broke our silence before I did. The first words out of my mouth in seven weeks, were hers, not mine. It was the Bella-self who was hurt and confined and failing to recover. Isabella was strong and well and full of life.  
"I won't stay here, Bella," she told me. "I hate hopistols and I hate being hurt. I'll get us outta here and I'll get that guy. I'll get all guys…fuck 'em all. Hurt 'em all. I don't ever wanna be a growed up if this is what the world holds for us. I'm never gonna grow up, I'll be little forever. Just like the lost boys," she decided with finality._

I sighed. "And she never did," I confirmed with a subtle shrug and a small smile. "Isabella never grew past the age of five. I had birthdays and continued to grow older, but she still remains very much a child, sometimes even a baby. Her demeanor and actions alone can testify to that. I imagine Marie will always be the same age also…forever seventeen. Of course, none of this is logical, but, as you know, being a multiple personality _isn't_ logical."


	50. Dynamics And Confrontations

EPOV

"Can we talk about something else?" she asked, looking up at me from her seated position on the tire swing.

I furrowed my brow and silently conceded with a nod. "…what do you want to talk about?"

She shrugged. "I don't know…just something. _Anything_. Isabella and Marie have been the topic of discussion between us for the past two weeks now. The girls this, the girls that…" she muttered softly.

I used my fingertip to curl a soft lock behind her ear. "Well, love, that's because the subject of them practically dominates everything else around here, recently-" I offered as way of explanation before she cut me off.

Again.

She nodded. "I know. But…it seems like every time I turn around, I have another therapy session to attend. My past, my abuse…it's all I ever get to talk about now. I'm lucky if we can somehow fit a quick grope session in between the therapy sessions. I just…" she sighed, cutting herself off.

"Bella, what's wrong?" I asked, wiping another wayward tear from her rosy cheek.

She sniffled, looking up at me through watery eyes. "Edward, it's going to be like this for a while. A _long_ while. I mean, if you haven't noticed, this may be my body, but I'm not exactly in control of it. Isabella and Marie control my awareness. And I never have any inner-peace. Even right now, as I speak to you, if I look down at the grass, or off to the side and focus on a tree, or the house, or even the fucking trampoline, Isabella _screams_ at me to look at you…_only_ you. And nothing else. She wants to continually stare at you through my mind's eye. They are infatuated…enthralled, and obsessed with you…" she trailed off in explanation, then quickly scoffed with a little sniffle. "And we are _still_ talking about them."

I sighed, knowing how upset she was at the moment. I understood her feelings, and I sympathized with her because even though I enjoyed my time with Isabella and Marie, I still missed my Bella. Incredibly so. She was right, and Marie had made a good point the other day when she had said, "Bella got the short end of the stick in this shitty deal". My sweet Bella has been fading into the back round while her alternates come forth to explore their new world and surroundings.

She subtly shrugged and used the back of her hand to wipe the last of her tears away. Her body slowly came towards mine with the swing's slight motion as she spoke again in a quiet, subdued voice. "I just wish that things were _normal_ again, you know? Like before you left and everything got so fucked up. My mind was silent then. Marie wasn't around and Isabella was dormant. I had no terrible memories flooding my mind at every single turn. Now…_because_ of those memories and _because_ of the abandonment, I need my alternates. Wishing them away right now would be suicide for me. I need them…" she trailed off before she added in a low whisper, "I love them…"

"I love them, too," I assured her, keeping my hands on the rope above her head.

She nodded and remained silent for a minute while I stood in front of her and controlled the tire swing's slow movement. She had asked me to keep up the constant motion and it reminded me a bit of Isabella…needing to be rocked in my arms when she's upset.

I started to try and think of ways to make my Bella feel better. Cheer her up.

_Hmmm…maybe we could go out?_

Yeah, that's a great idea. Get her out of the house and go into the city…maybe take her to dinner and a movie, and then maybe I could show her that new bookstore that all the commercials keep raving about. Books-A-Million.

_I'm a fucking genius._

"Bella, how about I take you out? We can go to our restaurant, and then maybe-"

"But that's just _it_, Edward - don't you get it?" she snapped, cutting me off with her sudden sharp tone. She sighed before continuing, "We could go out…to a romantic dinner, or whatever else you have in mind, but there's no guarantee that _I'm_ the one you'll be taking out," she clarified.

I nodded in understanding.

Well, damn. I really should have thought of that.

_Dumbass._

She softened her gaze and leaned back a little, always keeping her focus on me. "Edward, I miss you. And it's not for the same reasons that you miss me. When I'm not around, I don't notice it, but _you do_, so I get why you miss me."

I nodded. "I _do_ miss you, Bella…" I whispered my assurance, then leaned down and placed a soft kiss to her upturned forehead as the tire swing brought her body close to mine.

She nodded. "I know…but honey, I miss you for other reasons. Because all I've done since I've moved in with you is therapy. I see your dad, and that's it. It's not fair, and it's not right…but the girls totally disagree. They see it as this being _their_ time to get to know you, since apparently, I already know you so well, and since I insist on cooperating with this therapy crap, then I should be the one to endure it. They haven't agreed to it - in fact, they continue to protest it, so they will not be participating anytime soon."

I sighed. "Well, baby…I think all we can do for now is make the most of our time together," I told her as I stopped the swing's motion and squatted down so that I was eye level with the most beautiful girl in the whole world. I watched as the soft breeze played in her hair, and reached forward to tuck that same stray lock behind her ear again. "Sweetheart, I know it's hard. But I'm here…I'll always be here, and we'll get through this together. And yes, it's unfair that all you've done is therapy. But there's not much we can do about that, love. Did you know that it was going to be like this?" I asked.

She subtly nodded. "Yes…" she whispered, keeping eye contact with me.

I nodded. "I thought so…" I murmured and sighed. "Well my love, we just have to wait it out and see if the girls will become more comfortable with the concept of therapy anytime soon."

"I know…" she mumbled quietly before biting that plump pink lip.

I placed both my hands on her legs and soothingly rubbed the pad of my thumbs over her bare little kneecaps. "So, I know you miss me. And I miss you. That's why you and I are going to spend as much time together as we can, _while_ we still can."

Her gaze flicked down to the ground before quickly coming back to mine. "Edward, I-" she started, but I cut her off, needing to reassure her of my commitment again before this conversation went any further. I hated that my mate was so sad and insecure about this.

I raised my brow slightly and placed a gentle fingertip to her warm lips, silencing her. "And I can continue like this as long as you need me to, baby. If I only get to see you once a week, then that's okay. If I get to see you three or four times a day, then that's okay, too. Bella, I will take you however I can get you, any way I can get you," I told her, letting my finger slowly fall away and start to lightly glide along her bare arm. "I know that you're worrying about me and how I'm handling things, but I don't want you to worry about that. Don't worry about _me_, worry about _yourself_. I'm fine, love. I'm more than fine," I promised her with a small smile.

Her features remained relaxed, but she didn't smile back, and she stared at me for eighteen seconds before she spoke again. "Edward, I'm mad…" she whispered.

I raised my brow in question. "…Mad?"

She subtly nodded. "Mm-hmm…" she trailed off before she answered my unspoken question in a calm voice. "At you. At your family."

_Why?_

I subtly nodded. "Okay…" I softly muttered, sitting back on my heels.

She sat still on the swing and kept her intent gaze locked with mine as she leaned her head against the rope to her side. "I don't want to be…" she assured me in the same soft voice.

I cocked my head to the side a bit. "Will you talk to me, love…tell me why?" I asked, trying desperately to keep my tone light even though I could feel the anxiety building.

_Why is she mad at me?_

She furrowed her brow and gave me a slight look of disbelief while I tried my best to concentrate on her sweet scent and how the sun reflected the highlights in her long flowing hair.

We had been out here for almost an hour now. After therapy, my Bella had stuck around, which was completely unexpected, but I enjoyed nonetheless. She was surprised, to say the least, that she was still dressed in her pajamas, so after she dressed in some faded light blue jeans with holes in the knees, and a plain white tee, she came outside to the backyard, stating that she wanted some fresh air, since it was beautiful outside today; a rarity here in Forks.

After walking around the backyard a bit, just holding hands and talking, we ended up over here by my little girl's swing. My Bella had yet to ride it, so with a smile on my face, I lifted her up and placed her on the rubber surface, then controlled the slow motions of it while we talked. We talked about a lot of things, but mostly about the girls, hence her desire to change the subject about ten minutes ago.

But now, here we sit…her on the swing, and me on the ground by her bare feet.

"You left me…" she whispered brokenly.

I felt my features morph into one of pain and remorse as that familiar pain gripped tightly at my chest. "I'm sorry," I promised, my voice strained with the weight of our topic.

She subtly nodded, her expression remaining calm. "I know," she assured me in a soft voice. "And I forgive you…that hasn't changed, Edward. I just…don't know how long it's going to take for this hurt to go away," she told me, placing a small hand over her heart.

I nodded in understanding and brought my hands back to her thighs, lightly massaging them. I knew of the pain that she was talking about. It was a horrible, burning kind of pain, the kind that left you feeling panicked, hollow, and broken, all at the same time. It was the pain of the greatest loss in the entire world…the pain of losing your mate.

"I'm here now, baby…" I assured softly, lightly tracing an old scar on her knee with my cool fingertip. "I know we're still working on healing our relationship, Bella. And that's what it's doing right now…it's healing. We both still feel some of that pain, but we get comfort in each other's presence, right?"

She nodded.

I cocked my head to the side a bit. "See, my beautiful girl? I love you so much…" my voice softly lilted, giving her a small smile before I straightened my features and held her gaze captive with my own. "You are mine, Isabella Marie Swan. I'm _never_ letting you go. Never," I assured her, my tone ringing with finality now.

We stared into each other's eyes for seven seconds before she spoke again. "Edward?"

"Yes, love?"

"I know…I know that I'm yours, and after knowing what it's like to live without each other, neither one of us wants to go through that hell again," she told me, biting her lip. "I want to make it clear though, that I'm not so much worried about it happening again, as I am still just getting over it. It's all still very new…and fresh. I just got you back Edward, and just because the latest topic around here has been about Isabella and Marie, and about what happened to me as a child, don't you think for _one minute_, that I forgot about that fact, Edward. It has only been two weeks since Italy, and my heart still hurts…_very_ much."

I nodded. "I know, baby…mine does too," I whispered.

She nodded and sniffled, the unshed tears gathering in her beautiful eyes again. I hated the sight of it. "And I've heard a million apologies from your lips, Edward…I don't need your apologies anymore. I know that you're sorry, and you know that I forgive you. We are past that stage, okay? I just need _you_…that's all. Just you. I'm sure that things between us will get better as time goes on. I'm not worried about that," she told me, successfully blinking her tears away. "But I can't help but still feel a little heartbroken and insecure, you know?" she asked, her breath hitching.

_No, don't cry…_

I nodded and stood, quickly hooking my hands under her shoulders, and held her to me. "I know, love," I told her, enveloping her small form in my arms. I concentrated on the incredible warmth of her body and her beating pulse against my cold, hard skin as I cradled her to my chest.

"And I'm so mad at your family," she whispered in my ear then, tightening her own hold on me.

I nodded and turned towards the house, thinking that it would be more comfortable for her to talk while we cuddled up in bed. I gently caressed her back and kissed her neck, just below her ear. "Do you wanna go inside?" I murmured against her soft flesh, noticing my mark slowly fading away. I would have to put another one there…soon.

She should _always_ be marked as mine.

She subtly shook her head, letting it rest on my shoulder now. "No," she murmured. "I don't want to see them."

I registered the hurt thoughts of my coven members in the mansion, then nodded to the angel in my arms. "Alright…" I muttered after a minute, then sat down in the spot she had occupied a minute ago. I positioned us on the tire swing so that she was straddling my lap, and we were facing each other, our legs dangling on opposite sides. I kissed away the worry wrinkle that had formed on her forehead, then smoothed it out with my thumb. "Tell me what's wrong, sweetheart. Why are you mad at the family?" I gently prodded, letting my hand fall away and land on her hip. I absently traced small circles on her hip bone with my thumb while she searched for the words to say.

After a minute, she finally came up with, "They left me, too."

"Mm-hmm…" I nodded in understanding, using my body's weight to lean back, then forward a bit, causing the swing to start a soothing, subtle movement.

"And it _really_ hurt, Edward. I mean, I was beginning to think of them as the family I never had, you know? Finally…there were people I could rely on. People who cared about me. And then one day, it was just…gone. All of it. You, your family…my feelings of relief at _finally_ being whole and feeling like I _belonged_. The illusion of my safety," she explained with a small shrug, before continuing on, "I mean, it was all just so sudden. The first man who had ever acted like a real father to me, the woman that I was starting to love and trust enough to call 'mom', the best friend and sister I never had…my soul mate…" she trailed off in a small voice with a little sniffle, "One day, you guys just _weren't there_ anymore, and I realized how temporary those feelings of security actually were. They didn't even last a year. Six months. That's all I got. Six months of the best days of my life, and it all ended too quickly."

I nodded and brought her warm little hand up to my lips, placing a cool kiss to her palm. "It did…" I murmured in agreement.

She nodded and cleared her throat. "And what you said…when you said goodbye? It may have been shitty, and it may have hurt like hell, but at least _you_ said goodbye. I never got _anything_ from them! I needed my best friend, Edward. I needed her advice, and Esme's comforting embrace…Carlisle's kind words. But they weren't fucking there. They all just went away, without a goodbye, and _why_? What for? Because _you_ said so? What the hell!" she exclaimed with furrowed brows, completely exasperated.

I kissed her rosy cheek, shushing her. "I know, love…shhh…"

She sniffled. "It's not right, it's not fair," she whimpered.

I nodded. "I know it's not, baby," I assured her, withdrawing my lips from her silky soft skin and choosing to run my fingers through her wayward tresses instead. The wind kept blowing them around, and I decided to try and keep the stray strands out of her eyes from now on. "Do you want me to explain that to you, love?" I asked, smoothing some hair behind her ear.

She sniffled again, then gave me a slightly confused look. "Explain what?"

"Why they did that…left without saying goodbye," I clarified, keeping my voice soft.

She nodded and bit her lip. "Please," she pleaded in a quiet voice that cracked.

I nodded and sighed. "Okay…" I breathed out, trying to decide how to explain this particular facet of being in a vampire coven. I gave my beautiful mate a small smile and lightly kissed her lips before drawing back and making sure the swing kept up it's slow movements. I kept my fingers in the very tips of her hair and occasionally smoothed away a wayward strand or two while I talked. "Basically, you are right, Bella. They did it because I told them to. It all goes along with being in a coven…but sweetheart, I need you to understand some things first. We are _not_ a _family_, Bella. That's all apart of the human façade we have to keep up in order to live among the humans. Even now, when I call Alice my sister, or Esme my mom, it's all for _your_ benefit, baby, because you are human and that's the only thing you understand…'family'. You are not familiar with vampire coven dynamics. First of all, the only thing that would make us a 'family' is the fact that we are all bonded by the venom of our Sire. Carlisle is my Sire, not my father, Bella. He is my creator, as well as Esme's, Rosalie's, and Emmett's. Jasper and Alice do not have the bond, but they are apart of this coven, regardless. Now, Esme's situation is unique because her Sire is also her mate. You will have that in common with her, love, because _I_ will be the one to change you. Carlisle won't have anything to do with it. It will be my venom that will flow through your veins. You will be _mine_, in every sense of the word. I will be your Sire, Bella, which means that I will be responsible for you. It will be up to me to make sure you are fed properly and that you follow the rules so as to not draw the attention of the Volturi," I explained in a soft voice.

She nodded, absorbing all of this new information. "Okay…" she trailed off, silently telling me to continue.

"So, it is that _bond_, Bella. That bond between me and my coven members that compelled them to do as I asked when it came to you. I came home the night of your birthday party, and pleaded in absolute desperation for them to do this, so that you could be safe and have a chance at a normal, human life," I told her, placing a kiss to her forehead, then going to back to drawing little circles on her hip with my thumb. "Baby, none of them wanted to do it…" I admitted in a soft voice. "I could read the reluctance in their thoughts and hear their protests screaming in my head," I assured her.

She nodded a bit reluctantly, so I continued on. "But they did it anyway…because they didn't have a choice. You are _my_ mate, Bella…you have to understand that I am the Male and I decide what is best for you. My coven members just had to go along with it because they didn't have a say in the matter. They never have and they never will, because you are not their's…you are mine."

She furrowed her brow. "So it really was just because _you_ said so…" she inquired.

I nodded. "Yes."

She shook her head. "That's not good enough," she decided. "My best friend leaves me without so much as a fucking postcard for seven months, and she thinks that she can just get off the hook because then she can blame the decision on _you_? The whole _family_ thinks that? Fuck that! Fuck them!" she yelled in my face, angry all of a sudden.

I sighed. I knew that she wouldn't understand the coven dynamics, being as she is not a vampire yet, but I still wanted to explain the basics to her. "The whole _coven_ thinks that," I corrected.

She subtly shook her head. "No! They have minds of their own, Edward. What - they don't know how to say 'no'? That's bullshit!" she insisted.

I used my left hand to gently scoop some hair behind her shoulder so that it would all flow down her back and not fly in her face anymore. "That may be, baby, but it's still the way things work around here. You're going to have to learn to accept that if you ever want to be like us," I told her pointedly.

She crossed her arms over chest and screamed in the back of her throat, apparently unable to contain her anger on the matter.

I stopped my movements and squinted my eyes at her.

_Really, Bella? A temper tantrum?_

I quickly removed my right hand from her hip and swatted her ass. "Don't you start…" I trailed off in warning.

It cut her scream short and she furrowed her brow, scowling at me.

"Bella, I put up with teenage fits and toddler tantrums all day long. I won't hesitate to test out these new parenting skills on you as well," I told her, raising an eyebrow at her in challenge.

After a minute of silently staring at each other and rocking in the breeze, she exhaled a shaky breath then smirked at me, a glint of anger remaining in her expressive eyes. She leaned forward and placed her flushed cheek against mine, then lightly kissed the shell of my ear before whispering into it, "I'm only gonna say this once, Edward, so listen closely…" Marie trailed off, gripping the collar of my shirt with her small fist. "No. Hitting. My pretty Bell." She leaned back to look into my eyes, and when they made contact, she raised her thin brow questioningly. "Got it?" she asked, her tone no longer a soft whisper, but a harsh, clipped one.

I set my jaw into a hard line, but didn't bother answering her. She would not interfere with this, and if she wanted to protest it, then I'd bust her ass too, as soon as I was done doing the same to my Bella.

Her inquisitive eyes flicked between the two of mine for nineteen seconds before she blinked twice and muttered through pursed lips, "It's not right, Edward. They left me, they don't just get to _get away_ with it like that, and expect me to be okay with it. I'm still mad." She hesitated and looked off to the side before she added, "Well, no, that's not true…_I'm_ hurt. _Marie_ is mad," she corrected with a little nod.

I nodded, glad that my Bella was back and picked up a long strand of her hair, twirling it in between my fingers. She appeared to be oblivious to the minute exchange between me and Marie, and I was just fine with that. "I know it's not fair, Bella…but what they did _was_ right, because that's what our coven dynamic called for. I don't expect you to understand, sweetheart. I just felt that you deserved an explanation," I supplied.

Her head slowly turned back in my direction as a little giggle escaped through her slightly parted lips. "Edward?"

I gave her a small smile. "Hmm?" I hummed, leaning back a bit to start the swing's subtle movements again.

"We're swingin, huh?" Isabella asked with an adorable smile.

"Yes we are, baby girl," I confirmed, then leaned forward, simultaneously encouraging the swing's movement and placing a kiss to my little girl's soft rosy cheek.

She hugged me. "I get to hold onto you, 'stead of the ropes, huh…"

I chuckled and put my hand to the small of her back, then kissed the top of her head. "Yes, angel, hold onto me. I'll keep you safe…" I assured her softly.

She tightened her hold around my neck and nuzzled her face into the soft cotton of my shirt. We swung from the tree like that for eleven minutes before my baby broke the silence. "Edward?"

"Yes?"

"I gotta potty."

I nodded and reached my feet towards the ground to stop the swinging motion. "What did I tell you about asking, angel?" I gently prodded.

She shrugged. "Dunno, but I gotta go…" she told me while unwrapping her arms from around my neck.

She started to try and scoot herself off my lap then, but I was quick to press my palm to the small of her back and hold her in place. "Isabella, stop. You need to wait until the swing stops moving to get off of it," I reminded her.

She looked up at me with furrowed brows. "But Marie said we could jump off…" she muttered with a confused gaze.

My eyebrows shot up at this declaration, and I felt my eyes narrow into a glare as the tire swing came to a full stop. "Oh, _really_…?"

She nodded quickly.

"Well, Marie is going to get a spankin if I ever catch her trying to jump off this thing, and you will too, Isabella." She gasped at this information, but I continued on, wanting to make this new rule crystal fucking clear. "Do _not_ jump off the swing. Do you understand?"

She nodded her assent with a slight frown. "Mm-hmm…"

I placed a quick kiss to her forehead and tucked that same stray lock behind her delicate little ear. "And you don't have to ask to use the bathroom, Isabella," I reminded her.

"Kay," she muttered as I stood from the swing.

My girl was bare foot, as usual, and even though I knew there was nothing on the ground that would hurt her, or puncture her skin, I still didn't want to risk it, so I kept her held to me and carried her all the way to the patio. As soon as we were on pavement, I set her down and softly patted her bottom, so she turned and quickly took off upstairs, intent on our bathroom, no doubt.

While I listened to Isabella's hurried footfalls along the steps, I noticed the time and figured that I could stay in the kitchen and try to come up with something to make for lunch, so I opened up the fridge and started to quickly scan it's contents. Just as I came to the decision to heat up an angus beef hotdog for my little girl, I heard the familiar sounds of her cries coming from upstairs.

I glanced up towards the ceiling the same time that I closed the fridge door, then took off at my natural speed up the steps leading to our bedroom. When I came upon our bedroom door, it was open and Isabella wasn't inside, though. Instead, she was behind the closed bathroom door.

I flared my nostrils and pulled her scent deeply into my lungs to make sure that all traces of blood were absent, dead or otherwise. I wasn't sure why she was crying like that, but I knew that she wasn't due for another menstrual cycle for about three weeks, so I doubted it had anything to do with that, but you can never be too sure. Some cycles are erratic for some women, and I am sooo glad that my Bella isn't one of those women right now. Then of course, there is the possibility that she hurt herself, but I was quickly assured that that wasn't the case either, when my senses didn't detect an open wound.

I shook my head from it's thoughts and chose to just lightly knock on the door. "Isabella, baby…?"

She cried some more, but didn't answer me, so I took a chance and lightly pushed open the wooden door.

At this point, I was fully prepared to see her sitting on that potty, doing…human…_things_, because my anxiety at her distress always causes me to just throw caution to the wind, so to speak, and right now, I just need to see for myself what's wrong, so that I can do what needs to be done to make whatever that hell it is, _better_. That is my job after all…as her mate, it is my responsibility to always make it better.

What I saw when I entered the bathroom though, had me furrowing my brow in confusion. Isabella was standing by the toilet, bawling her fucking chocolatey eyes out…and that's it. Nothing was amiss. There were no new owwies…she hadn't fallen down, or anything.

"Baby, what's wrong?" I asked, concerned.

I kept my stance by the door and watched as she brought a tiny fist up to her rosy right cheek and wiped some tears away. She sniffled then, and looked up at me with fearful eyes. "I peepee'd my pantieeees, Edwaaard…" she cried.

My eyes shot down to the lower half of her body then, and sure enough…the inside creases to both her pant legs were wet…along with the crotch area. And there was a tiny little yellow puddle on the floor by her bare feet.

_Fuck my life._

"_Isabella_," I admonished in a low voice as I brought my gaze back to her flushed, tear-stained face, and noticed the slight twinge of ammonia in the room now.

She whimpered out another pitiful cry. "I'm s-sorrry…" she promised.

I sighed. "Stay there," I instructed while I went and got our dirty clothes hamper out of the closet.

I noticed when I grabbed it that it was already half full, so it would make sense to go ahead an do a load of laundry tonight anyway. I held the hamper to my hip, then walked with it back into the bathroom.

When I was standing in front of my little girl again, I pointed suggestively to her faded blue jeans. "Take 'em off, angel," I gently instructed.

She sniffled and squeaked out a small, "Kay," then continued to cry as she went about the task of unbuttoning her jeans and slipping them off.

When she handed them to me, I put them in the hamper and nodded towards her wet purple cotton panties, as well. "Those too, baby girl," I told her, keeping my face impassive.

She quickly pulled off her panties and handed them to me in a small, outstretched fist.

I tossed them in the hamper, then turned back to my little mate. "Isabella, what…why did this happen?" I asked, perplexed because she had never wet herself before.

I had to mentally take a step back and realize that this was actually a common, if not normal, occurrence with a lot of five year olds.

Her voiced cracked at the end of a particular sob, then she gasped in a breath and explained, "I had to go really, _really_ baaad…"

I squinted my eyes at her. "Young lady, I told you that from now on you didn't have to ask to go to the bathroom. I let you know that _yesterday_, so why did you wait, today, until you had to 'go really really bad', to _still_ ask for my permission? Why didn't you just go?"

She shrugged, looking so small in only her white t-shirt, while she continued to stand before me and cry.

"You are a big girl, Isabella. You can go all by yourself, you don't _need_ permission," I reiterated.

She sniffled before repeating herself, "I'm sorrrrry…"

I subtly shook my head and pointed towards her bare feet, where the tiny puddle of urine lay. "_This_ happened because you didn't listen, baby girl. Do you understand that?"

She whimpered and slowly nodded her head. "Yeah…"

I raised my eyebrows. "And what is your rule about listening?" I pressed.

She wiped away a few more tears with a clenched fist. "That I'm s-sposta…" she trailed off in a shaky voice, trying to quiet her cries now.

I nodded, then quickly reached around her small form and swatted her bare ass, which started the barely tamed cries up all over again. "Follow your rules and _listen_, Isabella," I scolded.

"K-kay…" she sobbed out.

I pointed to the toilet beside her. "You sit right there while I clean this up," I instructed.

She sniffled and sat down. "But I don't gotta potty, Edwaaard…" she insisted as I knelt down and started ripping some toilet paper off it's roll.

I paused my movements to slowly look up at her. "I know," I muttered dryly.

She let out another cry and sniffled, then took to sucking on her pretty pink lips. I handed her some toilet paper and told her to wipe her face and blow her nose. She took it from me with a nod, and did as she was told while I used some more toilet paper to wipe up the little yellow puddle that was smaller than the palm of my hand.

I tossed the soiled tissue into the toilet in between her legs, then quickly reached behind her to hit the flush button. Isabella followed suit with her own soiled tissue and continued to try and quiet her cries and calm herself by sucking on those little lips. I walked over to the counter and grabbed the small bottle of Clorox bathroom spray from the cabinet underneath the sink, then spritzed the area where that puddle had been. After I wiped the cleaning solution up with some more toilet paper, I flushed that as well, then swung the shower curtain open and held my hand out to help Isabella stand from the toilet.

"Go stand in the tub, sweetheart."

She nodded, no longer crying now. When she stepped over the ledge of the tub, she reached down towards her belly button, where the hem of her shirt lay, but I quickly shook my head.

"No, Isabella…shirt stays on," I told her.

"Why?" she asked in a small voice.

I bent over and started the tub's faucet. "Because only your bottom and legs need to be cleaned."

"Kay," she said, then sat down, getting ready to take a bath, apparently.

I shook my head again. "No, Isabella. Stand up. I didn't tell you to sit down."

She furrowed her brow. "But-" She cut herself off when she saw me reaching for the detachable shower head. "Nooo…" she whined, the salt of some new tears starting to mix with her scent.

I gave her a stern look. "Isabella, listen to me," I told her. She nodded, so I softened my features and continued on. "This water won't hurt you, I promise. I won't let it. It has different controlled settings, baby girl, and I'm going to twist it until it's on the Gentle Rain setting, okay? It won't pound on your skin and sting you," I assured her. "Alright?"

She looked hesitant, eyeing the harmless white showerhead cautiously, before reluctantly nodding in my direction.

I breathed a sigh of relief and hit the button to turn the shower spray on, but I made sure to keep it pointed away from my baby girl's sensitive skin. Isabella watched with wide eyes as I twisted the faceplate of the showerhead three times, and noticed how the water came through the tiny holes at a different pace with each setting. Once it was on the desired setting, I let her feel the water's pressure with her hand and waited until she nodded her assent to point it towards her smooth, bare legs.

"Turn around, baby love," I instructed once the front of her was all wet with the gentle warm spray.

She twirled for me, so I let the water run over her bare ass for a minute. I noticed a faint pink hand print on her right cheek from when I'd spanked her for this whole episode a few minutes ago. I still couldn't believe she actually waited that long…until she had to go 'really really bad', to do anything about it. Not only was it against the rules, because she didn't listen, but it's also not healthy. She could get a bladder infection from holding it for so long.

I subtly shook my head, then told her to get the body wash down, along with my Bella's scrubby.

"Edward?"

I turned the spray away from her so she could to softly scrub her bare skin all clean. "Hmm?"

"My scrubby is all blue and shimmery…" she told me with a small smile.

I nodded. "Mm-hmm, I know it…"

"S'pretty…" she trailed off as she leaned up against the tiled wall and slightly lifted her leg to run the scrubby along the sole of her foot.

"Yes, it is," I agreed.

"I'm scrubbin my twinkle toes, too, Edward," she told me with raised eyebrows while she scrubbed said twinkle toes.

"Good girl," I commented.

She smiled, then switched feet. When she was done with that, and her legs were all soapy, she gently ran the suds'd up blue scrubby along her bare sex. "All done," she proclaimed then.

I subtly shook my head. "Wash your bottom too, pretty girl," I advised.

She nodded and muttered, "Kay," then quickly ran the soapy sponge along the delicate curve of her ass. "All done," she repeated.

I nodded. "Alright, hold out your scrubby and I'll rinse it off before I rinse your skin."

She did as she was told, and after the soap was all washed away from my Bella's bath sponge, she hung it from it's plastic hook on tiled wall, then stood still while I ran the gentle spray along the bare skin of her bottom, legs and feet.

I shut the water off, then grabbed the white fluffy towel from the rack and wrapped it around Isabella's waist, covering her delectable little bottom from my view. "Alright angel, dry off and I'll go get you a fresh pair of panties and some shorts," I suggested as her stomach subtly growled at me.

"Kay," mumbled into the quiet of the room.

I turned and left the bathroom, taking the hamper of dirty clothes with me. While I rummaged through the drawers for a pair of baby pink cotton panties and some faded blue jean shorts, I listened to Carlisle's phone call downstairs. He was on the phone with Charlie, and it sounded like he was encouraging him to come over for a visit to _discuss_ some things. What, I don't know, as he kept his thoughts hidden from me, but I guess I would find out soon enough if Bella's father chose to except the invitation.

I took the small articles of clothing back to my little girl and handed them to her. "Come downstairs to the kitchen after you get dressed, sweetheart. I'll be down there making your lunch," I informed her, then kissed her smooth forehead.

She nodded. "Kay," she muttered, beginning to undo the towel's wrap from around her small waist.

I took the hamper downstairs, and was glad to find Esme already in the laundry room, waiting for me.

I smiled at her. "Thanks."

That weird 'red sock rule' came unbidden in my mind then, and I found myself breathing a sigh of relief because I didn't want to have to do the load of laundry myself and risk messing something up.

She nodded. "Happy to do it," she assured me while starting up the large washing machine.

I gave her a single parting nod before going into the kitchen and getting back on the task of preparing food for my mate. As I was placing the single hotdog inside a bun and heating up a small bowl of EasyMac in the microwave, my little girl came skipping into the kitchen, all dressed in her new outfit.

"Edward?"

I smiled. "Yes?"

"I'm a good girl, huh? I got dressed just like you told me to…" she pointed out with an adorably smug smirk.

I nodded, placing the ketchup bottle back inside the cabinet above the counter. "Yes, baby, you're a good girl," I murmured before reaching for her and wrapping her in my arms for a reassuring hug. She softly giggled as I kissed the top of her head. "No more accidents, okay angel? You don't ask to use the bathroom, you just go," I reminded her as I hooked my hands underneath her shoulder and lifted her to my chest.

She nodded and silently pointed towards the counter, so I sat her down on it, then placed the small plate of food on her lap. While she happily chewed on her hotdog, I retrieved a cold juice box from the fridge and put the tiny straw in the silver hole before setting it down beside her bare leg.

"Mmm-mmm-mmm," Isabella smiled and hummed as she chewed.

I smiled as I watched my mate consume her food, but I couldn't help my mind's distraction at the moment.

What did Carlisle want to discuss with Charlie that couldn't be discussed over the phone, and more importantly…why the _fuck_ is he blocking his thoughts from me?

We all sat in my bedroom…me, Charlie, Carlisle, and last, but _certainly_ not least, my Bella. She had come back around to see me halfway through her lunch, and that was about two hours ago. Her father showed up about forty minutes later, and Carlisle was quick to fill him in on certain details. Apparently, my Bella never signed a client/patient privilege agreement, and as her therapy with my Sire is not official and completely off the record, he feels that her parents need to be informed of certain _things_.

Things like the fact that dissociative identity disorder, or multiple personality disorder, does not take place in the human mind after the age of three. So, in order for my mate's mind to split in the way that it has, something had to have happened _before_ Jim. Before her mother's neglect. Before Charlie's divorce from Renee.

"I don't know, Carlisle…" Bella's voice quietly muttered from her spot on the bed. "And no matter how many times I repeat myself, that's not going to change."

Carlisle nodded from where he stood by the large window pane, while I stayed in my spot beside the wall next to the nightstand. It was taking all of my practiced control not to annihilate the man before me…Bella's father.

Not only does he have an extremely neglectful nature, but he didn't do a damn thing to step in and help my Bella when she needed him to. Not just when she was a small girl, but after that too; throughout her entire life. His mind remains completely clueless to the depth of depravity that has happened to my angel. He knows nothing of her hospitalization, nothing of her abuse, and nothing of her alternates. He relied on what his mother told him about his daughter while she was growing up.

He barely knew her as a child.

"Bella, I understand that you don't remember, and that's quite normal, dear. Memories before the age of three are usually non-existent, or they can be quite fuzzy. That's partly why I asked Charlie over here today…" he trailed off in explanation, nodding to where Charlie sat in the large recliner.

"Charlie, you and Renee split when Bella was just three years and four months old, is that correct?" Carlisle inquired politely with slightly raised eyebrows.

Charlie cleared his throat, uncomfortable with the reason for his visit and the topic at hand. "Yes, it was the following January after her third birthday," he confirmed with a nod.

My Bella continued to look somber and subdued as she kept her gaze focused on her hands in her lap. She wouldn't make eye contact with anyone, and I knew that this discussion was making her uncomfortable as well.

"And you don't remember anything that might have happened? No clue?" Carlisle pressed.

Charlie subtly shook his head.

"There were no babysitters, public outings, daycare facilities…" Carlisle trailed off, grasping at straws. "Everyday a child is hurt by a care giver, and it's not uncommon for them to be lured away by strangers, as I'm sure you already know," Carlisle added as an afterthought.

Something Carlisle said must have triggered something in his memory then, because at that moment, he remembered a particular outing that he and Renee had taken Bella on.

She was two…

"Um, well…I don't know if you can make anything of this, Carlisle, but when Bella was two years old, her mother and I took her to the fair for the first time. I remember that day, because it was the first time she had ever tried cotton candy. She instantly loved it, and by the end of the day, had convinced me to buy a total of three sticks for her. She was so hyper and would not lay down to go to sleep until 3am that next morning," he recalled with a small smile on his face before it fell and he continued on, more serious now. "But…Bella had also gotten lost that day. Her mother and I…and five security guards at the park, were searching for her. They sent out announcements of my missing baby girl over the park's intercom speaker system. Um, she was missing for a total of fifty seven minutes. We found her over by a park bench, sitting by herself. She was just silently sitting there…waiting for us to come find her. She wasn't crying, and she didn't make a big fuss about it. In fact, as soon as she saw us, she got a big smile on her face and asked if she could go on 'the big fairy wheel' now. No matter how many times I tried to correct her, she always called it 'the fairy wheel'…" he trailed off at the end of his trip down memory lane. "So, uh…I don't know if anything happened then, because she appeared to be fine, and she never mentioned anything about a stranger, or being hurt," he finished, a bit brusquely.

Carlisle nodded and I glared at Charlie.

_Neglectful asshole._

My Bella remained silent.

"It's possible…anything is possible," Carlisle assured in a light tone. "Thank you for sharing that with us, Charlie. It will help me figure some of this out, and it might trigger some memories for Bella. I've been confused during these last few sessions with your daughter because I remember that piece of information from medical school; the fact that the abuse has to start before the age of three, for the person to become a multiple, and things just didn't add up because her current child alternate is a five years old," he explained.

Charlie looked over at Bella with slightly raised eyebrows. "She's got a kid one, too?"

I rolled my eyes.

_Her name is Isabella, asshole, and she's **mine**._

Carlisle simply nodded. "Yes…yes, she does. That particular alternate is the one who created those drawing I showed you earlier…as well as the automatic writing."

Charlie nodded, but my Bella's sudden loud gasp drew everyone attention to her.

"You showed him?" she whispered accusingly to Carlisle. Her breathing was becoming shaky and her tired eyes were quickly beginning to water. "Y-you…you _showed_ him?" she yelled a second later.

Carlisle's eyes widened a bit at her sudden change in demeanor, and I really don't know why…I mean, you'd figure he'd be used to it by now. "Bella-" he started, but she cut him off, no longer talking to him, but to Charlie now.

"Dad, it's not true…" she told him, her voice back to a pleading whisper as a tear fell down her rosy cheek. She quickly shook her head, suddenly desperate for him to believe her. "I-I'm not crazy, I _swear_," she promised him, her voice cracking as she gave into her sudden change in emotions.

He subtly shook his head and stared into his daughter's eyes. "No one ever said that you were crazy, Bella," he told her.

She remained quiet and sniffled as he got up from the recliner and walked over to the foot of the bed, where he proceeded to stare her down. "I do need to talk to you, though, Bella. And I need you to be truthful with me," he said with a serious gaze.

She sniffled again and nodded, looking up at her father and giving him a patient look.

"Two weeks ago, I got a call down at the station from the Port Angeles Police Department and they gave me some very interesting news. They found a man in an alley way beside the local health food store…he was dead, Bella. They found traces of saliva on the collar of his shirt and his neck. They ran the DNA, and it came back to you…_your_ saliva, Bella."

She gave a slight gasp at this information and I narrowed my eyes at him.

"What did you do?" he asked a second later.

She quickly shook her head. "I didn't do _anything_, I swear," she vehemently promised.

He sat down on the bed, just inches away from her now. "Don't lie to me, young lady…" he warned.

_What the fuck do you think you're gonna do about it?_

I could feel a low growl erupt in my chest then, and Carlisle shot me a warning glance, before going back to watching this scene play out before him.

She exhaled a shaky breath and shook her head, tears coursing down her rosy cheeks now. "I'm not…" she choked out.

He huffed at her blatant lie, but what he didn't know was that my Bella wasn't lying. _She_ did not kill that man, Marie did. And she spit on him when she was done. I had watched her beat that man to death, and I was damn proud of my girl, too. He would not make her feel bad about this.

"Alright, you need to leave," I told him, speaking for the first time since this discussion began an hour ago.

Carlisle was quick to interrupt Charlie's intended response. "Son, come here…" he spoke in a calm voice, but I heard the undercurrent of the authority he was using in his tone.

I glared at him, angry that he was taking advantage of his position as my Sire at the moment. I walked the few steps over to him and he spoke in our frequency while I kept my intent stare trained on my mate.

"Edward, nothing is going to happen. Let their interaction play out. Charlie needs to find out for himself what happens when Bella gets upset…" he trailed off suggestively.

I nodded curtly. "I know, but just knowing that he's making her cry right now makes me want to snap his fucking spine," I hissed out.

"Just calm down…" he advised after a minute.

I ignored him and turned my attention back the conversation going on between my mate and her father. He seemed to have put any paternal feelings he felt for her off to the side as he let himself go into full cop mode.

"Don't you give me that shit, Isabella - you did it, didn't you? You little liar, you killed him, didn't you?" he accused her with a glare.

She gave him an incredulous look, the tears blurring her eyes as she shook her head again. "No! Goddamn it, I s-said no, Charlie!" she exclaimed, her voice strained.

"I don't believe you. That is bullshit! DNA doesn't lie, Bella!"

She looked back down at her lap then, and let her little hands cover her face as a small sob escaped her lips.

_Motherfucker._

I growled low in my chest and stepped forward, glaring at the back of Charlie's head.

Carlisle's hand shot out and grabbed my wrist, becoming a vice, and restraining me to him. I turned my head to focus my scathing glare on him instead.

_Let me go._

"Let me go," I snarled in our frequency.

"No."

"Who the fuck are you?" my baby's voice rang out in the large room then.

"Who the fuck are you?" Charlie's confused voice muttered right back.

Both Carlisle and I turned our heads to focus back on the scene playing out before us.

My girl leaned forward then, and put her hands to his chest, roughly shoving him off the bed and onto the floor. She stood up and stared him down. "This is _my_ room, prick - who the fuck are you?" Isabella insisted right back.

Charlie quickly stood and took two steps back, steps that Isabella quickly followed with her own.

Charlie shot a nervous look towards Carlisle then, before focusing back on his daughter. His was remembering when she had become hostile with him and busted his nose the day before she moved out, and he didn't want that happening again. He mentally resolved to not get violent with Bella, by any means, but he would not hesitate to put his training to use and restrain her if need be.

I didn't want him touching her _at all_, though, and I found myself growling again. I just couldn't seem to help myself around this man. I didn't want him around my mate, regardless of if she was his daughter, or not. She was _mine_. He wasn't worthy to be in her presence.

"I know you…" her child-like voice lilted then, as she cocked her head to the side a bit, still staring him down. "You're _Charlie_, huh?"

He nodded.

"Yah-huh, I heard about you. You're Bella's father. The dirty kike. Are you a nigger lover, too? Or just a filthy Jew…" her soft voice trailed off.

His eyes widened a bit in shock. "_What_?" he breathed, ignoring the racial slurs and instantly recognizing the voice coming out of her mouth as being that of a very young Bella. He was remembering phone calls he made to her on holidays when she was a child.

"Well, lookey here, Charlie, you sure fucked this one up. Where the hell were you, with your fancy uniform and shiny badge, when Bella needed you back in the day? Were you scared of my Daddy? Hmm? Is that it?" she asked with raised eyebrows before she smirked at him. "I bet you were, you filthy kike…he would'a made you his bitch in ten seconds flat."

He cleared his throat, and slowly inched away from the thin girl before him, but Isabella kept countering his steps, slowly walking forward, and following him wherever he went. He kept repeatedly shooting both me and Carlisle nervous glances. His thoughts were jumbled; he clearly didn't know how to handle my hostile baby.

Mine and Carlisle's gazes remained impassive, but inside, I was smiling.

_Karma's a bitch, Charlie._

This is what happens when your abused child inadvertently comes back and confronts you on your inexcusable neglect.

Charlie's nervous eyes locked with his daughter's and he muttered quietly, "Where is Bella?"

Isabella's eyes flashed with anger as she shoved him against the wall that they were standing by now. "Bella's off in a corner crying somewhere, you scared her off! You're gonna have to deal with _me_ now," she told him, gripping onto the collar of his uniform.

Charlie tried to slap her hand away from his shirt, but she swatted his right back and tightened her grip on his collared neck. "Look at me," she demanded.

He sighed and gazed at Isabella, but said nothing and didn't fight against her hold on his clothes anymore.

She poked a small finger at his chest and kept her cold glare on his face as she began scolding him. "If you ever come in here, and try pullin that tough-guy shit on Bella again, I will kick your fuckin ass to grave, do you understand me?" she warned, sounding like a little mini-drill sergeant.

He lightly held up in palms in a sign of surrender. "I understand you," he mumbled, wanting to placate her now, in hopes that he would be able to leave as soon as possible.

She continued to glare at him in silence for four more seconds, before she added, "Watch your ass Charlie, b'cuz I might decide to fuck it, too," she threatened in a quiet voice.

He bit is lip and turned his gaze to Carlisle, his clouded thoughts screaming at how inappropriate this particular personality was being, and wanting him to intervene as her doctor to alleviate the situation.

"Son…" Carlisle called out to me in the quiet of the room, even though I was standing right beside him.

I quickly looked at him in acknowledgement.

He nodded pointedly towards my mate. _Calm her down_ he thought at me.

I slowly walked over to where Isabella had Charlie pinned up against the wall. "Isabella…" I called out softly.

She turned her head to look at me, but didn't loosen her grip on the uniformed police officer.

I came up by her side and wrapped my arm around her waist. "C'mere, baby…let him go…" I gently coaxed, murmuring in her ear, and using my other hand to gently pry her little fingers from his shirt's collar.

She gave in to my cool touch, smiling at me and not bothering to put up a fight, much like I knew Marie would have done.

I took her small hand in my own and led her back over to the bed. She sat down on the edge and I squatted down in front of her, quickly wiping away the remains of my Bella's residual tears on her rosy cheeks, then gave her a small smile.

She giggled softly and smiled back, then ran the warm tip of her index finger down my left cheek. "My Edward…."

I subtly nodded. "Yes. I'm your's, baby. Now…do you want me to make him leave," I asked, nodding pointedly to where Charlie still stood by the wall, "or do you want to talk?"

She sucked on her bottom lip and subtly kicked her legs out in a relaxed, care-free manner. "Talk," she decided after a minute.

I nodded and stood from my position on the floor. "Okay, baby…you can _talk_. But no more violence," I told her.

"Kay."

I walked back over to stand by Carlisle then, and wondered how this particular conversation was going to play out. Carlisle was excited at what information he could get out of this entire visit. He had already gotten so much, but still, he wanted more.

_Greedy bastard._

Isabella slowly turned her head and focused on Charlie, who still stood by the wall, staring kind of wide-eyed at my girl. He was reluctant to 'make friends' with her, due to her profound hostility and very recent threat to sodomize him, but it was obvious that Isabella wasn't going to let him walk out of here unscathed. She wanted explanations, and she wanted them _now_.

And I would make sure he gave them to her.

After a minute, and a reassuring nod from Carlisle, Charlie walked over to stand in front of Isabella. When he locked gazes with a pair of chocolate eyes that matched his own, he asked in a calm voice, "Do you know why Bella's DNA ended up on that dead man in the alley way? Was it you?"

She subtly shook her head as she slid off the edge of the bed to stand before him once again, squinting her eyes back into that same, familiar glare. "You watch your fuckin mouth, mister, before you go accusing people of shit they didn't do. I didn't kill anyone…" she trailed off before cocking her head to the side a bit and adding, "at least, not _this_ time. And Bella couldn't kill anyone, even if she wanted to. It was Marie, Charlie…it was _Marie_," Isabella revealed.

He nodded, sighing in relief now that he had some answers. "Marie," he muttered under his breath.

"That mean man tried to rape Bella. He deserved it."

Charlie nodded, and they kept eye contact as he slowly walked around her small form to sit on the bed, so that now Isabella was standing over him. He thought that it would make her feel less intimidated if he sat down. "So…you're name is Isabella?" he asked conversationally, remembering when I had called out to her with that name.

She nodded curtly, her expressive eyes narrowing with suspicion as she continued to stare him down.

He sighed, figuring that he could get some more answers while he was here. Answers to questions like why she existed in the first place…what happened to his daughter at the age of five…what type of childhood she had…what her mother was like. "Isabella…?" he trailed off in question.

She furrowed her thin brow. "Hm?"

"Tell me about Mommy," he requested.

She scrunched up in her button nose in the most adorable way. "Mommy…?" she asked lowly, her voice dripping with disdain.

He nodded. "Yeah, Mommy."

Her eyes flicked over towards the wall, before landing on his again, a look of complete disbelief coming over her features. "Who the fuck cares about Mommy?"

He subtly shrugged. "Well, I do…I care about Mommy," he offered, his tone conversational and light. He figured he would have to keep it light for him to get any sort of information out of her.

Isabella rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Lemme tell you something - everybody had a piece of her, know what I'm sayin? Mommy's a whore," she told him. "She let Daddy hurt me and Bella so she could go out every night and flash her cuntie to every nigger with a half-limp dick willing to fuck her with it." When the room fell silent, she stepped forward until they were practically nose to nose, then added, "She sent me away. She's a bitch." When Charlie's only response was a subtle nod, she subtly shook her head and whispered, "No one gives a fuck about Mommy."

He nodded. "Okay…I get it. You don't like Mommy…um, we can change the subject if you'd like," he suggested.

She slowly backed away from him until they were about two feet apart, but her eyes never relaxed out of their narrowed suspicious glare.

"Uh…I hear you like to draw. I saw some of your-" he started, but she cut him off, cocking her head to the side and pursing her pink lips.

"You saw the pictures…" she muttered quietly. Accusingly.

She took a step forward and hardened her glare on him when he didn't answer her immediately. Her narrowed eyes flicked over to Carlisle before she focused back on her biological father and quickly swung a clenched fist, landing it square on his jaw.

_Holy shit._

Charlie groaned in pain, the force of the blow causing him to lean to the side a bit and cup his face.

I saw in Carlisle's mind his intention to step forward and grab Isabella, but I shot my arm out and held him back. "No," was all I said.

_Don't you touch her, she is **mine**._

_I_ would step in and put an end to this if things got too out of hand.

"Answer me, you dirty kike," Isabella demanded, leaning her body slightly to the side, so that she could keep eye contact with him. She gritted her teeth and grew impatient when he didn't straighten up right away, so she reached forward and grabbed a hold of the collar on his shirt again, fisting it with both of her hands now. When he was sitting up straight, she shook him a bit. "Do you think I'm playin witchyou?" she asked incredulously through a delicately clenched jaw. "I will _break_ your fuckin neck," she growled out.

_Damn, my baby's angry._

Charlie's breathing became labored, since he was trying to hold himself back and breathe through the pain. He held up one hand in surrender to Isabella just like he had done before, but kept his left hand on his sore jaw. His thoughts were both incredulous, and somewhat proud. This was the second time that his daughter had hit him, and both times she had done it very well; hence, he taught her well.

"I'm gonna ask you again, have you seen those pictures?" she asked, nose to nose with him once more.

He nodded. "Yes…yes, I saw the pictures," he breathed out.

"God_damn_ it, goddamn it…" she muttered, shoving her fists against his collarbone and letting go of his shirt.

She turned away from Charlie then, choosing to confront Carlisle now. "_Why_ did you show him?" she screamed, her face blushing furiously with her anger as she walked up to Carlisle. She put her little palms to his chest and shoved him, but he was still as stone, refusing to budge. His expression remained blank under my little girl's intended assault. "That shit is none of his business - it's _private_, you asshole! Don't you show 'em to another goddamn person, do you hear me?" she ranted, screaming and yelling in my father's face.

I was just inches away from where they both stood and went to grab her arm. "Isabella-"

"No!" she yelled, yanking her thin arm out of my grasp to point an accusing finger at Carlisle as her eyes began to water. "Edward, _he_ showed Charlie my pictures!" she informed me, then shook her head a bit as she continued on, "Not the pretty ones, the ones with my owwies on 'em!"

I nodded. I knew which pictures Carlisle had shown her father. It was the perfect sketches she had done the night before her first day of therapy. There was a picture of the purity knife, a ball gag, a sewing needle with black thread, and a few other very disturbing and graphic ones she had drawn at a later date that I had found and handed over to Carlisle…just to name a few.

I reached for her again and this time she didn't recoil with my touch, so I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and protectively tucked her into my side. I began rubbing soothing circles onto her bicep with my thumb as I put my mouth to the shell of her ear and softly murmured, "I know, baby. The doctor is very sorry, but you need to calm down, alright? I told you no more violence, but you went and punched Charlie anyway. You screamed in the doctor's face. You are forgetting your rules, Isabella; do you want a spanking?"

She quickly shook her head as a small sob escaped her lips. "Nooo…Edward, I'm _mad_," she cried, stomping her bare foot. She pointed her accusing finger to Charlie next. "Edward, I want him to leave. Make him go away. I don't _like_ him," she said, glaring at her father.

Charlie stood from his spot on the bed, always holding that hand up in surrender to his daughter. "No worries, kiddo…I'm leavin," he told her.

"Good riddance," she spat at him.

He subtly shook his head. "Jesus Christ," he muttered incredulously under his breath as he walked past her to walk out the door. Her angry eyes followed him all the way out, until he disappeared into the hallway.

Carlisle chose to follow him out, wanting to give me and my mate some much needed privacy, and he wanted to make sure Charlie's jaw was fine.

From what I understand, from the thoughts of both Charlie, and that pervert in the alley way, my girl packs quite a punch.

I heard their hushed conversation as they walked down the stairs together. As soon as I heard Carlisle reiterate the fact that Marie acted out of self-defense to Charlie, I tuned them both out and focused my attention back on my little girl.

I engulfed her little hand in my own, and after a quick examination of her knuckles, I hooked my hands underneath her shoulders and lifted her to my chest. "Shhh, my baby love…calm down," I gently coaxed while lightly caressing her back.

Her blood pressure had spiked from her anger, and I didn't like the rhythm that it was causing her heart to beat in. I needed her to calm down so that her precious vital signs could slow and the soothing _thump-thump_ sound could, in turn, calm _me_ down.

I was stressed out too. Not only did I have to deal with the scent of my mate's tears in the bedroom, but I also had to control my anger. Not at Isabella, but at Charlie. He deserved that punch she gave him, and that's why I didn't stop her.

Isabella deserves answers. She deserves revenge.

She deserves privacy.

She has every right to be angry with Carlisle right now, too. Without a second thought, he had shown her private pictures to the one person in the world she might actually hate more than Jim. I wouldn't blame her if she never trusted my Sire with another one of her creations again.

Isabella sniffled into my neck, but she wasn't crying anymore…the slight flow of angry tears had stopped. Her breathing had evened out and her heart rate was slowing. I could feel how her pouty lips remained pursed against my skin, though. She was scowling.

"Baby, do you want to talk about it?" I asked in a soft voice.

"No," she stated petulantly. "Bella's father is stupid and your Daddy is stupid, and I never wanna ever see 'em ever again."

I sighed and started pacing the floor while Isabella tightened her hold around my neck. As much as I wanted to forget about this afternoon's events and act like they never happened, I still had to be the responsible one and deal with my baby's bad behavior. "You know you broke some rules back there, baby girl…what should we do about that?" I asked conversationally.

She shrugged, but otherwise remained silent.

"Hmm…well, you didn't listen when I told you no more violence. You hit someone. And you used those naughty words," I pointed out, then placed a gentle kiss to her shoulder. "You have to follow your rules angel, and face the consequences when you break them."

"Edward?" she mumbled into my neck.

I turned to walk in the opposite direction. "Yes?"

"I'm mad," her high-pitched voice informed me.

I started rubbing little circles in between her shoulder blades and tightened my hold on her, hugging her to me. "I know, sweetie…but you don't act like that when you're mad. You don't scream, or yell in people's faces. You don't punch them in the jaw. That's _naughty_, baby girl…you have to learn different ways to deal with your anger."

"How?" she muttered curiously.

"You use your words, not your fists, angel. You use nice words, not mean ones," I explained.

"Actions speak louder than words, Edward," she countered.

I fought a small smile.

_Yes, they do._

"Well, how about this…when someone makes you mad, you come tell me; I'll take care of it. And if you ever wanna hit someone, you _don't_…instead, you go into the room next door, and you punch and hit and kick that big red bag hanging from the ceiling," I advised.

I felt her nod against my shoulder.

We were coming up on the desk now, so I reached behind my neck to loosen Isabella's tight hold. When I set her down on her feet, she looked up at me, giving me a questioning look.

I just nodded pointedly towards the familiar corner. "You need to be in time out right now, Isabella. You're in trouble."

She gasped, then furrowed her brow at me and stomped her foot.

My 'stern face' fell into place immediately. "Do you want a spanking, as well?"

She gritted her teeth. "No…" she told me in what I recognized to be her controlled, angry voice.

_That's right, baby love. Control that anger. Good girl._

"Face the wall," I instructed.

She gave me a slight glare, but did as she was told anyway.

As I was backing away from her still form, I said, "When you're done, we'll go next door and I'll show you how to take your anger out on that punching bag."

She didn't respond, but I didn't expect her to; she was supposed to remain quiet while she was in time out.

While Isabella served her three hundred seconds in silence, I decided to go next door and set everything up. I had to get the boxing gloves out, and check the weight distribution of the punching bag where it hung from the ceiling.

I figured Isabella could spend five minutes beating the shit out of this thing, if not longer. But it would have to be at least five minutes - I don't care if she gets worn out, or not. She can take her afternoon nap afterwards. She needs to learn that violence is not the answer…even if I am a hypocrite and don't actually agree with that asinine phrase.

My baby girl was justified in hitting Charlie.

I couldn't let her know that, though. I had to set a good example…be a good 'parent', annoying as it was.

As my mind ticked off second #257, I walked back into the bedroom so that I could let my little girl out of the corner in forty three seconds.

She wasn't where she was supposed to be, though. My eyes quickly scanned the room, and when I found that she wasn't in plain sight, I quickly walked around the king size bed, and found her down on her knees by her baby doll basinet with that thumb in her mouth.

I gritted my teeth, angry that I couldn't trust her to be a big girl and serve her time out without me watching her like a hawk all the goddamn time.

"_Isabella_," I admonished in a low voice.

She didn't respond, just softly patted the doll's head where it lay in her lap, then reached forward to gently stroke the fur of her stuffed bear where it remained in the plastic basinet.

I strolled over to where she sat and leaned down, reaching for her small wrist and gently pulling that thumb out of her mouth. "Baby girl, what did I tell you about your thumb and bedtime?" I asked her, getting fed up now.

_Naughty girl._

Maybe she really does need a spanking. Maybe some quiet corner time wasn't enough.

"Wanna play with me?"

I froze at those soft, quiet words, my hand still gently gripping her wrist. My eyes widened in shock as I slowly turned my gaze to look directly into my mate's expressive chocolate eyes.

That wasn't Isabella voice.

* * *

A/N:

O Jeezus, what type of fuckery is going on now?

Review for me, sweets!

xoxo


	51. AN: A Sequel?

Author's Note? _Really_? Yeah...afraid so, kids. Sorry.

But this isn't like the last one, so don't worry!

Chill out - Calm down - Eat a fucking cookie.

Alright, back to business...I'm putting this up because I need to let my beautiful sassy readers know what's going on with this story...

The next chapter will **not** be posted under Personality as chapter 51. I will be posting it as the first chapter to the sequel, Intertwined. It will start up exactly where chapter 50 left off, so no worries on missing out on anything important. We are just entering the next phase of the story, kids, so I'm pretty sure if you put me on your list of author alerts, or fave authors, or whatever, then you'll get the email notifying you when I post the sequel's first chapter.

I am in the middle of writing it right now, actually...started on it this morning. There are approx 3500 words so far, and I will finish it ASAP for you guys ~ Pinky Promise! But I'm sick right now, so a few hours of typing a day is all I can do at the moment. It'll probably be ready in the next day or two, though. My goal is to have it out by this weekend, and I think that's completely doable...I don't think I'm moping around with something fatal, or anything. Just some killer migraines and upset tummys. I'll get over it. I'm a survivor :)

Alright, so to sum it up... the next chapter will be posted as Chapter 1 to Personality's sequel, Intertwined. Add me to your alerts!

Love you guys xo


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